Implicit
by KingdomDream
Summary: Raven has been plagued with thoughts of Red-X ever since he kissed her during a mission, however he disappeared soon after. Now he has resurfaced with an identity that seems to cause more trouble for Raven. Raven is now conflicted over her feelings for X and her duty to the Team and the city. What will happen when the level-headed member of the team meets her match?
1. Chapter 1

_**(A/N): Hello! Welcome, come on in and read this story! Please review and tell me what you think!**_

 _ **Two Years Ago**_

" _Don't let him get away!" Robin shouted as the team chased after the high-tech thief, Red-X. They were currently in a warehouse where a shipment of precious jewels were. Red-X had stolen several jewels that collective value added up to nearly three million dollars._

" _C'mon kiddies, I don't have all day here." The synthesized voice of Red-X taunted. Cyborg launched a blast towards him and Red-X flipped avoiding the high-powered laser. He landed on a display case and threw an X-shaped weapon at him. It landed on his chest and short-circuited his system. Cyborg collapsed on the ground and Beast Boy and Starfire skidded to a stop to help him._

" _Go on without me! I'll be fine!" He yelled out before the other two took off after their fellow teammates. Starfire yelled out before firing several starbolts at the thief. Red-X practically cartwheeled through them and chuckled loudly at the alien girl's angry expression._

" _I thought you had better taste, Bird Boy." Red-X jeered and Starfire growled loudly before launching beams out of her eyes. Red-X pressed the button on his belt and teleported out of sight. The team stopped in their tracks and looked around. Suddenly Starfire was covered in goop that rendered her immobile. She screamed as she fell from the air and Robin quickly turned around to see Red-X crouching on a stack of boxes._

" _Starfire!" Robin yelled as he ran over to her._

" _I am the okay!" She mumbled and Robin gritted his teeth as he stared up at Red-X. He threw another X-shaped projectile towards Beast Boy who was charging him as a pterodactyl. It grew in size and trapped Beast Boy's limps. He went flying towards the ground and Raven caught him with her powers to soften his blow._

" _X! This ends now!" Robin yelled out before throwing several explosive projectiles of his own. Red-X jumped from the boxes and avoided the explosion before landing several yards from Robin and Raven. Robin charged him and Red-X smirked underneath his mask. He knew Robin's moves and knew what to expect when it came to combat. While Robin was more acrobatic than him, he knew he was stronger than the Boy Blunder. Red-X blocked his kick with his forearm before blocking a punch with his other arm._

" _Azarath Metri—"_

" _Ah, ah, ah, Sweetness. I wouldn't want to cover up that pretty little mouth. Leave this to your leader and I." Red-X interrupted Raven as he continued to block Robin's hits. Raven, having remembered her previous encounters with the thief, stopped her chanting and simply prepared herself for when she was needed. Robin pulled out his staff and swung it towards Red-X. Red-X caught the other end of his staff firmly in his hand and laughed._

" _Wrong move." Red-X said before pushing down on the staff and disarming Robin. He spun around and jabbed him in the chest with the staff before spinning it in his hand and swinging it against his head. Robin fell to the ground unconscious and Raven quickly flew into the air. Before she could even start her chant, ropes entangled her arms and she started to fall struggling against her restraints. Red-X somersaulted over Robin's body before catching Raven in his arms._

" _Hey Little Bird," Red-X mused as Raven glared at him from underneath her hood. "Missed me?" He asked as Raven began struggling against the rope again. Red-X stood back up on his feet and walked towards the other end of the warehouse with Raven still in his arms and away from her teammates who were still trapped/unconscious._

" _What are you doing?" Raven asked as she stared up at the skull mask._

" _Don't feel like hurting you, Little Bird." Red-X said before placing her on the ground and against some boxes. "Won't bode well for me if I'm on your shit list." He said as he kneeled in front of her and placed his hand on the box beside her head._

" _What makes you think you're not already on it?" She deadpanned._

" _Just trying to not give more fuel for the fire." He chuckled._

" _What's your interest in me?" She asked narrowing her eyes towards him._

" _What can I say?" He said standing back up to his full height. "You've piqued my interest, Sunshine, and very little things do these days that don't involve money." He told her as he secured the bag of jewels to his belt. He kneeled back down and lifted up his mask to show his mouth and the tip of his nose. "And I intend to satisfy myself in my interests." Raven watched as his lips form into smirk before they suddenly were on her own lips. The kiss was soft, but he pressed firmly against her lips and awoken something inside of her. It warmed her body and she felt her toes curl in her boots. Red-X pulled away smirking before pulling his mask down over his mouth again._

" _See you around, Little Bird." He said before disappearing right in front of her. Raven didn't know what frustrated her more: the fact that Red-X got away or the disappointment she felt that he stopped kissing her so soon._

They were no longer the Teen Titans and simply now just the Titans. Cyborg, being the oldest, was now 21 and Raven and Robin were 20. Starfire didn't quite have an age to go off of, but the group assumed she was near Robin and Raven's age. Beast Boy rounded out the group at 19. Dick Grayson ditched the "Robin" mantel a year ago and took on the persona as Nightwing. Cyborg—or Victor—made a few upgrades while Beast Boy—Garfield—went by the Changeling. The girls remained more or less the same, with just a few switches to their outfits, but other than that the team had remained the same.

"I'll be out." Dick said addressing his group. "Batman needs me for a mission." He said and Starfire—or Kori—was quick to wish her friend safe travels. "There hasn't been much going on lately, so I don't expect much to happen while I'm away, but if there is a _dire_ emergency, don't be afraid to call me." Dick said holding up his communicator. "Also, Bruce is having a gala or whatever to unveil some new project. You all are welcomed to come, it will be at the end of this week." He told them and they agreed to go seeing how they didn't have anything better to do. Everybody bid him their farewells to him as he headed towards Gotham and Raven took this as an invitation to have a day to herself, outside the tower. She went to her room and changed into street clothes before transporting herself to the main city. Raven adjusted the black beanie on her head before tossing up the hood to her leather bomber jacket. She popped in headphones into her ears before walking in the direction of her favorite bookstore.

It has been a couple of years since Raven and the Titans last seen Red-X, but her mind always manages to drift back to him and the kiss he shared with her. She was confused about the whole situation and she really would appreciate it if he would at least explain his actions. Red-X had never took an interest in her in their previous encounters, she didn't understand why he suddenly decided to kiss her. It's not like he was other villains who had taken upon themselves to flirt with Starfire, but she still didn't get why he said all the things he did and kissed her. The whole thing plagued her more than she liked.

Raven entered the bookstore and quickly went to the fantasy section. She's been reading a lot of non-fiction lately and wanted to delve back into fiction. She ran her fingers along the spines of the various books looking for a book that piqued her interest. Raven saw a book by the name of _Daughter of Smoke and Bone_ and picked it out of the shelf. She had heard it was a good book. Raven opened the book and began reading the first few pages to see if it was really worth her time. Suddenly a hand came around Raven's mouth and an arm wrapped around her waist. She summoned her magic around her hands, but before she could attack the person behind her she watched as her surroundings shifted and she was suddenly on the roof of the Wayne Enterprises Building.

"Nice to see you again, Little Bird." Raven stiffened as the same voice from before whispered in her ear. He released her and she whirled around to stare at the masked face of Red-X and even though she couldn't see his mouth, she knew he was probably smirking. He was taller now with broader shoulders and bigger arms, but from never seeing his face she couldn't really tell if he looked that different.

"What are you doing here?" She asked in her usual monotone, but raised her eyebrow. "Last I heard you were in Istanbul." She commented. While Raven and the Titans haven't _seen_ Red-X, they've been keeping tabs (mostly Nightwing) on him and he's been doing most of his work in Russia and the Eastern Europe.

"Missed me?" He asked and Raven frowned. "Yeah, I had a few needy clients there but I'm finally back." He told her.

"Nightwing will be delighted." Raven muttered sarcastically.

"Ah, so he's officially ditched the Robin role? Still a Bird Boy though." Red-X said as he crossed his arms. Raven knew that he probably already knew that information, but for the sakes of appearances decided to pretend he didn't.

"What do you want from me X?" Raven asked crossing her arms.

"Has it been so long that you've forgotten my interest in you? Sweetness, you wound me." Red-X said dramatically throwing his hands over his chest.

"It's been two years and I didn't really think you liked me in the first place." She muttered.

"I've been busy, I apologize. But don't doubt my feelings for you, Raven." He said and Raven felt her chest expand with warmth. She frowned, this wasn't supposed to be happening. He's the enemy.

"What are trying to play, X? Trying to get info on us and figured I'd be the easiest person to crack?" She accused and Red-X just chuckled.

"And they say you're emotionless." He muttered shaking his head. "Trust me, Rae. If I wanted info on you, your dirty secrets or whatever, I would have already gotten it. Without your help." He said smugly and Raven just glared at him. "I get it though, you don't trust me. I say I like you and kiss you then leave for two years and come back. Plus the whole villain thing. But really, am I villain? I'm just stealing things from the rich and giving them to other rich people with a lesser moral compass. Think of me as Robin Hood." He explained and Raven just rolled her eyes.

"Are we done here? I don't get many days off." She grumbled before turning her back on him. He was really testing her patience and while she was confused about his character and his intentions, she knew better than to fall for his tricks.

"Day off, you say? How about a date later then, Little Bird?" Red-X asked as he moved back in front of her.

"I don't date people I don't know." She glared at him.

"That's a pretty flawed concept. Don't you date someone to get to know them better?" He mused and Raven's glare just hardened. "C'mon Sunshine, I won't be in this get up. You'll see me in the flesh." He said and Raven's eyes widened. "Told you that I'm into you." He said.

"Let me see you now." She proposed. He shrugged his shoulders and took off his mask. His hair was a shaggy mess of black hair and he had a strong jawline with a straight nose and angular features. His eyes were a bright shade of green that stared at her with amusement and he grinned at her with pearly white teeth.

"Jason Todd?" She asked slowly and looked at him with suspicion and a little bit of shock. Jason Todd died years ago at the hands of The Joker. Raven knew this, she was at the funeral and everything.

"Ah, so my reputation proceeds me?" He said as he moved behind her and she followed his movements.

"Jason Todd is dead. I don't know who you are, but there's no way you're him." Raven said as her fists clenched on the sides of her.

"Go ahead and feel me out to see if I'm lying. Bring out a DNA test. Do whatever, but I am Jason Todd." Jason said as he leaned against an AC unit. Raven stared into his eyes and looked at him for quite some time. She didn't feel any deception from him, in fact she hasn't felt any sense of deception since she's been in his presence. She was confused though. She had seen Jason Todd die and get buried, how could he possibly be alive right now?

"How?" Raven asked.

"How what?" He asked quirking an eyebrow.

"How are you alive?" She clarified.

"Well, not really sure about the whole coming back to life thing, but I woke up in the coffin I was buried in and hospitalized because Joker's wounds hadn't exactly healed and that resulted in a coma for some time. That's when the infamous Talia al Ghul found me, threw me into the Lazarus Pit, and trained me. After a year with her, I came back to Gotham, but quickly left to see what Grayson was doing and found the suit instead." He said motioning to the very suit that covered his body. "The rest you know." He told her. Throughout the explanation, she could feel small bursts of pain and anger, but he remained neutral for the most part.

"Does Bruce know—"

"No, Bruce and Grayson don't know I'm alive." Jason interrupted her, another burst of anger. Raven nodded and didn't ask anything more and simply stared at him. "I always had a crush on you, ya know?" He murmured and Raven raised her eyebrow in disbelief. "Dick would always come back and tell us about the shit he would do with you guys and I couldn't get you out of my mind ever since I saw a picture of you." Raven could feel his sincerity in his emotions and his nervousness and felt even more conflicted.

"Jason," She said and she could feel his spike in lust and admiration. "This is a lot to take in." She explained and wrapped her arms around herself. "I don't think I'm ready for a date."

"But you're not opposed to one?" He asked smirking. Raven blushed and he just chuckled before leaning over and kissing her on the cheek. "Don't worry, Little Bird. All in due time." He murmured before slipping his mask back on.

"Wait, how do I—"

"Don't worry." He said as he stood on the ledge of the building. "I'll be around." He leaped off the building and Raven sighed. What has she gotten herself into?


	2. Chapter 2

**_(A/N): Back again!_**

Jason hated these events. So many rich people, so many _fake_ people, but he wasn't here for them. No, he was here for her. He was perched on the high wall on the west side of the Wayne Manor and watched as cars rolled in and well-dressed people stepped out. Bruce was having some kind of event tonight to unveil his latest project and the biggest names of Gotham were here tonight—and the Titans. Jason dropped down on the lawn before running towards the large mansion. He made it to the wall on the west wing and jumped up to grab onto a window ledge.

He pulled himself up onto the ledge before scaling the wall. He made it to roof soon enough and looked around for a specific pattern of tile. He walked through the roof before finding it and he slid a tile to reveal a control panel. He typed in a code and more tiles moved to reveal an entrance into the manor. Jason dropped down into the library, but remained down in a crouch as he scanned the area. Seeing it was empty, he stood up and dusted off his tux before walking out of the library and blending in with a crowd of guests.

Jason entered the main ballroom and ran a hand through his hair. His eyes scanned the room seeing some people he has seen before, but most of the faces were unfamiliar. He leaned against a pillar and grabbed a flute of champagne off a passing waiter's tray. Jason remained inconspicuous as his eyes searched the various guests, looking for one particular bird. He saw Dick talking to the new Robin, Tim Drake and Barbara Gordon otherwise known as Batgirl. He scowled before shifting his eyes elsewhere.

He found her soon enough. His eyes raked down her back that was exposed thanks to the midnight blue gown she was wearing. It was just low enough that he could see the dimples on her lower back before the satin material covered her and flowed down to the ground. Her hair, which was a lot longer than it was two years go, but still that brilliant shade of violet was pulled over her shoulder and he saw her delicate fingers wrapped around the fragile stem of her glass. She turned slightly and the air from Jason's lungs flew out as he saw her face. Her violet eyes were soft and relaxed as she looked around the room. Her pouty lips were pulled into a small smirk and the way the shorter strands of her hair moved against her face—Jason never thought he'd envy hair.

Jason downed the glass of champagne in his hand before depositing it on a nearby table. He glanced around her one more time to make sure that nobody who'd recognize him would be around. He wasn't here to deal with Bruce or Dick. He walked over to her slowly and let his fingers trail down her spine as he leaned his mouth against her ear.

"Never would have guessed this was your scene, Little Bird." He whispered and he could feel her shiver at the sound of his voice. He smirked and was quickly met with Raven's steely glare.

"What are you doing here?" She hissed before placing her hand on his chest and pushing him away from the crowd. "Are you trying to cause a scene?" She asked. He could only chuckle at how upset she was.

"Are you forgetting who I am, Little Bird? I am Red-X and I've known Bruce and Dick for a greater portion of my life and I know how they operate. They won't notice me." Jason said and Raven frowned. He knew that Bruce was focused on finding out who exactly Lincoln March was. Bruce had reason to believe that he wasn't as pristine as he made himself out to be and half of the reason of this event was because of him. Dick was too preoccupied with guests and wouldn't be paying too much mind to his friends. Yeah, Jason knew how they were. "But if you want me alone that badly, I have an idea where we can go." He wrapped his arm around her waist and whispered in her ear. He smirked as he noticed her cheeks turn pink and her look very flustered about it.

"Somewhere people won't recognize you?" She inquired and he smiled against her ear. He was tempted to kiss her temple, but decided to keep the PDA to a minimum in front of these sheep. He pulled away from her and offered his arm to her.

' _Being a gentleman is far more important and effective than a charming persona, Master Jason.'_ Alfred's words echoed through Jason's mind as Raven wrapped her arm through his. He led her out of the ballroom and up the main staircase. He found an elevator on the second floor and entered Bruce's code. Five years and he still hasn't changed it. They rode the elevator in silence, but her arm was still twined with his. They finally reached the fourth floor and Jason led her to an empty guest room with a balcony that faced the garden. The doors of the ballroom were open so they could still hear the music pouring out from the room.

"So confident that Bruce won't catch you on one of the security cameras?" Raven asked as she leaned against the stone railing and stared back at Jason.

"Nah, he has his sights on this other man tonight. A man running for mayor, I believe. He's not going to pay attention much to his other guests especially ones who are in the company of a Titan." Jason smirked as he put his hands into the pockets of his pants. A sweet melody filled the air and Jason offered his hand to Raven. "Dance with me, Little Bird?" He asked softly.

Jason watched as she looked at his hands skeptically before back at his face. He just smiled softly at her and smiled wider when she placed her hand in his. He placed her hand on his shoulder and held the other one before placing his other hand on her waist. He began spinning them around on the small balcony slowly and Raven had to admit, it did feel nice. Because of her heels, her head stopped at right about his nose and he was feeling extra tempted to plant a kiss on her forehead…or reach down lower for her lips. But he didn't want to push her, he already had a feeling he was walking on thin ice.

"What's your favorite book?" He asked as she stared up at him in confusion. "What?" He grinned.

"Why are you asking me about my favorite book?" Raven asked slowly.

"It may seem like I know a lot about you, Little Bird, but I don't. I know about the hero part of you, but I want to know the person." He told her and she blushed lightly at his intentions.

"The Count of Monte Cristo." She told him and he raised his eyebrow with a look of surprise.

"A classic tale of revenge. I wouldn't have guessed it." Jason murmured and Raven shrugged her shoulders. He leaned the side of his head against hers while simultaneously pulling her closer to him.

"I like the storytelling aspect of it and how well it's written. To be honest, I have a lot of favorite books and that one was the one that popped up into mind first." She told him and he hummed against her hair.

"Do me a favor. Every time you remember a book you like, tell me." He asked of her and she moved the hand that was on his shoulder under his arm and wound her arm around his back and rested it back on his shoulder.

"I like a lot of books." She told him softly.

"I want to know them all." He spoke firmly and Raven squeezed his shoulder and buried her face into his chest. "What do you like about your friends?" He asked as he continued to spin them around.

"Why do you want to know about my friends?" She asked.

"Are all my questions about you going to be met with another question?" Jason grinned. "Look, I'm just trying to get to know you. The Titans seem important to you and while I don't know them or see them in a positive light, I want to know why they mean so much to you." He told her and her shoulders relaxed. "Who knows? Maybe I'll go easier on them because of you." He chuckled and Raven rolled her eyes.

"Beast Boy is a moron, but he's a loyal moron. He's always trying to make me laugh and while he doesn't succeed often, I appreciate his effort to make me happy. There's an understanding between us that I don't really have with the others. He gets how I am and I get how he is and while certain traits about us annoy others, we've accepted each other wholly. For a while, I thought maybe that I loved him—but I soon realized that I just liked being accepted. Not that the others don't accept me, but he's green and weird and I'm dark and weird so we get what it's like." Jason couldn't help but feel a little jealous at the mention of her being interested in Beast Boy, but he quickly squashed it when she told him that it was a misguided feeling.

"So many people think that I'm jealous of Starfire and all the attention she gets, but I much rather it be that way. I don't think I could handle all the attention she gets. She's so naïvely trusting of others and while it may seem like a bad thing, I believe it's something that makes her worthwhile. So many of us are jaded and cynical, it's nice to be around someone who sees the positives in the world and loves with all her heart. I've never met a more compassionate and kind individual with her and while she can't handle negative emotions well, she doesn't let that stop her from being a fantastic hero."

"Dick is very much the leader. He sacrifices a lot for us and I appreciate him doing that, but I just wish he could turn down the role a little bit. He's gotten better over the years and I think that's because he dated Starfire for a little bit, but he always put us and the city before him."

"He and Starfire broke up?" Jason asked surprised.

"Yeah, a couple of months ago. It was awkward first, but they're both professional when it comes down to it. It still upsets her a little though." Raven explained.

"Huh." He murmured. "I never thought they'd be good together anyways." He told Raven.

"Who'd you have in mind?" She asked.

"Just finish talking, Little Bird." He grinned as she looked at him suspiciously. Dick's love life wasn't exactly a spot in his life he could extort so Raven didn't think Jason would use the info against him.

"He has a goofy side though, I've seen it despite what people may think. You know, he's a born performer and that's always in him. We're the early birds of the team so sometimes I would hear him practicing his acrobatic skills rather than his fighting skills. I think he'd be happy if he didn't put so much pressure on himself."

"Cyborg is easy to talk to. While he goofs off with Beast Boy all the time, he knows when to be serious and he's a good listener. I really enjoy our afternoons where I would assist him with the T-Car. Sometimes, it's never ending conversation about the others, the world, abstract concepts, and philosophy and other times we sit in silence and appreciate each other's presence. He's protective too, he's always looking out for me. A lot of the focus is always on Starfire, but he always makes sure that I'm okay and that he's my friend if he needs me. If had I to choose someone, Cyborg would be my best friend." Raven said and Jason smiled softly.

"Cyborg sounds like a cool guy, they all sound like good friends." He told her and she could feel a pang of longing and anger in him, but it was soft and not overwhelming. He felt mostly happiness and she could decipher that as he was happy that she had good friends.

"Are you going to tell me about you?" She asked looking up at him.

"All in due time, Little Bird." Jason chuckled before kissing her forehead tenderly. "You just got to go on a date with me." He whispered.

"Isn't this your idea of a date?" She muttered and Jason laughed.

"I sneak into a gala that I wasn't invited to and you weren't expecting me to be at. We're on a balcony avoiding said gala and you're too scared to be with me in that room in case my old mentor and fellow Robin see me. I don't know what your previous dates were like, but this is not a date." Jason told her. Yeah, she wasn't going to get out of that date so easily.

"You're really persistent." Raven said slightly annoyed and he just chuckled lightly before placing his cheek against her head.

"Don't act like you don't like it." He told her. Raven had to admit, it was nice dancing with someone like this. She had never really done it before and even though she knew it was wrong, she couldn't help but smile against his shoulder.


	3. Chapter 3

_**(A/N): Back again! Just stopping by to say that some material has been taken from the animated movie Batman: Under the Red Hood. If you've seen it you could probably figure it out. But don't go into thinking that I'm following along with that storyline. I'm just borrowing from it. Going a little dark in this chapter, but it should be expected with character like Jason Todd. Anyways, enjoy!**_

Jason stood in his apartment beating on a punching bag he had hung up in his exercise room. Sweat dripped down his face, neck, and back as he continued to punch the bag in a series of rapid hits. He was breathing heavily and his head was pounding, but that didn't stop him as he continued to punch the bag mercilessly.

 _Let's try to clear this up, okay Pumpkin? What hurts more? A or B?_

Jason gritted his teeth together as he began to punch the bag harder. His eyes hardened as he felt the skin on his knuckles break and bleed. He briefly looked to see the red substance staining his bandages, but ignored it and continued to punch the bag with all his might. His arms would shake from the force, but he ignored it. He ignored it all.

… _I'll just keep beating you with this crowbar!_

The punching bag was now swinging from the momentum in gained from Jason's punches. His breathing became more erratic as he moved on his feet to beat the bag as it moved. His mind was in a fog and he didn't bother with it. He refused to stop his punching now. Despite his hands throbbing, his lungs burning with the need for air and water, no he wasn't going to stop now. He was fueled by his own determination and rage.

 _Please tell the big man I said, "Hello," HA HA HA HA HA!_

Jason delivered one more final punch and the bag flew from the chain it was hung on and slammed into the wall before collapsing on the ground. Jason glared at the bag as he panted heavily, dripping in sweat. He scowled before unwrapping his hands and walking towards the sink hastily. He looked at the clock hanging in his kitchen to see that it was a little past midnight. He treated is wounds before guzzling down water. He needed to clear his mind. Raven was the first person to pop up in his mind.

It has been a week and a half since he snuck into the gala and stole her attention. She told him that she was going to spend some time in Gotham before returning to Jump City. He also knew that she has been back in Jump City for two days now. He glanced at the clock again to see it was closer to 1AM now. She would be positively furious at him for sneaking into the tower, but that didn't stop him from jumping into the shower and later in his suit. He had wanted to just forgo the suit and go in regular clothes, but he needed the transportation function to get to the tower. With that last thought, he disappeared.

* * *

Raven found herself back in Jump City, in her room, and alone—finally. Having spent the greater part of last week in Gotham with her teammates and Batman (plus sidekicks), it was tiring. It didn't help that Jason decided to pop up during the gala. She was completely on edge as soon as he whispered into her ear. She didn't want to even think about the possibility of him getting caught by Dick or Bruce and her being tied to him. Raven could only assume that there were some ill feelings towards Dick and Bruce on Jason's part, but she didn't know why or even knew if she wanted to know. When it came to his feelings towards them, it seemed like something that was deep seeded and went beyond Raven.

There was nothing going on in Jump right now besides the usual petty crimes that the cops could handle. Raven was grateful because she really needed time to herself to regroup and find her inner peace. She had gotten better over the years, especially after she had taken down her father, but she still found herself needing to meditate after something emotionally draining—and Jason was emotionally draining. She couldn't decide how to feel about him yet. A part of her—the hero—knew he was the enemy and had been one of Nightwing's greatest foes ever since he first appeared. Despite the couple of times he came to his aid…that made a lot more sense to her now than it had been before. However the other part of her—the girl—felt a spark every time he was near and it excited her and made her feel things she hadn't ever felt before. Not with Malchior. Not with Beast Boy. Not with any fickle romance she had before this—before him.

Suddenly the hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she felt a familiar shudder rip through her spine. She came down from her floating meditation position and onto her feet and noticed her window was now open and Jason was crouched there in his Red-X get up. She knew that she should be concerned at how easy he had gotten into the tower and the risk of him being here, but she couldn't help the warm feeling that spread throughout her body. Jason planted his feet firmly on her dark carpet before ripping off his mask and smirking at her.

"Hey Sunshine," He grinned. "I was in the neighborhood and thought I'd drop by." He twirled his mask around his finger and leaned against the wall.

"We're on an island, miles away from the city. Where were you, in the ocean with some cement boots?" Raven commented sarcastically and he chuckled.

"Like that could happen." He was always so cocky. "So I wanted to see you. Is that such a crime?" He asked as he pushed himself off the wall and walked towards her. She crossed her arms and looked up at him, clearly not amused. She sighed though and turned her back on him before motioning her hand dismissively.

"I'm sure you've committed worse crimes." Raven muttered as she headed towards her closet. Jason grinned as he watched her pull out clothes to change into. It was late, maybe she was about to head to bed. He didn't want her to head to bed so quickly now that he was here…although he could think of plenty of things that involved her bed, but sleep wasn't one of them. He walked up behind her and put his hands on her hips before pulling her body close to his and wrapping his arms around her fully. He rested his chin on the top of her head and lightly inhaled the scent of her hair. It was a floral scent, but it was not overpowering—jasmine, perhaps?

"You're touchy today." She commented, but didn't make any move to leave his arms.

"What can I say? I just missed you a bit extra." It was true. He left Gotham right after that gala and had been researching his next mark these past couple of days. Plus she gave a sense of calm that he couldn't find elsewhere. "So, I've danced with you all dressed up and in danger of exposing myself, I put myself in danger by revealing my identity to you, and now I've snuck into your room in the heavily equipped Titan Tower where the others are that can arrest me at a moment's notice. Don't you think all that effort and risk warrant a date, Little Bird?" He smirked.

"Why are you so persistent about the date thing? We're not exactly normal people. What makes you think a date will change that?" She asked as she pulled back from him slightly and turned around to face him.

"Plenty of abnormal people go on dates. And I want to take you out, spoil you a bit, and get to know you in a relaxed setting without you being paranoid of being seen with me." Jason told her. It didn't hurt Jason that Raven was nervous about being seen with him because hell, there were a lot of reasons that being caught together would be a bad thing. Besides, he likes to idea of the two of them being a secret. He wasn't quite ready to share her.

"If I say yes, will you promise to leave me alone?" She asked while crossing her arms and still holding her pajamas in one of her hands. Jason smirked before placing a kiss on her forehead, which made her heart flutter. Damn it. Raven's heart isn't supposed to flutter.

"I doubt you'll want that, Little Bird, but yes I promise." He told her and she stared up at him and couldn't help but get a little lost in his vibrant green eyes. _Damn it._

"Fine," She said after a brief moment of silence. "I'll go on a date with you."

* * *

Raven had checked in multiple times with Dick to make sure that nothing was going on because she didn't want to risk the chance of having to leave in the middle of her date or the team passing by her and seeing Jason. Of course they wouldn't know that Jason was Red-X (well, with the exception of Dick recognizing him) but it would just invite a lot of unwanted questions.

Jason hadn't told her where they were going, but he told her to wear a dress. Raven frowned at that. She didn't like wearing dresses, but he seemed pretty stubborn about the issue and rather let this go on smoothly without any trouble. She threw on a dark blue sundress that Starfire had gotten her a year ago before slipping on a loose knit, violet cardigan. She slipped on some flats and proceeded to leave the tower and appeared at the bookstore where she was meeting Jason.

"My, my, my…aren't you stunning, Little Bird?" Raven turned around to see Jason smirking behind her. He was wearing a gray dress shirt and Raven was a little surprised to see it stretching across his muscles. She had knew that he was muscular, but not _this_ muscular. He was in a nice pair of jeans and some black dress shoes. She had to admit, he looked good…but seeing him in a tuxedo was nice.

"I almost didn't recognize you without the suit." She said and he grinned at her before wrapping his arm around her waist. Raven had gotten used to his touchy-ness so his advances weren't that surprising to her.

"C'mon Sunshine, no talk of work tonight." He told her as they began to walk down the street.

"To Kill a Mockingbird." She told him as they walked through the streets going unnoticed. Raven has gotten into the habit of strictly wearing her hood while fighting crime so people tend to recognize her less. It probably helps that she's wearing a dress and Jason has his arm around her.

"Nice, one of my favorites too. Probably the only book I could stand reading in school." Jason said and she smiled briefly. She was positive that he would have forgotten what he said about her telling him all her favorite books, but apparently he was very on top of his game.

"I liked the whole aspect of a serious issue being looked at through a child's eyes and understanding." Raven said and Jason agreed. He suddenly stopped walking and Raven looked at him confused. He simply smirked and her before leading her to a nice bistro. It was casual enough that what she wore wouldn't look out of place, but nice enough to let her know that he was a paying a pretty penny for it.

"Good evening, how may I help you?" The hostess asked politely.

"I have a reservation for two, under Harper." Jason told her and she smiled and began to lead the two to their table. Jason held out Raven's chair and she thanked before he sat down himself.

"Harper?" Raven asked once the hostess was gone.

"I try to keep as much anonymity as possible." He grinned.

"Hmm, could have fooled me." She quipped as she began to look at the menu. Jason chuckled when the waiter appeared to take their drink orders. He noticed the waiter pay extra attention to Raven as she order a glass of sparkling water. Jason told him that he would like the same and the waiter was off, but not without telling them—Raven—that if they needed _anything_ to simply let him know. Jason can let him know how to drink his meals from a straw.

"Jason?" He shook his head and looked back at Raven who was staring at him in confusion.

"I believe our waiter has a crush on you." He told her as she rolled her eyes. She muttered something under her breath and it certainly didn't go unnoticed by him. "What?" He raised his eyebrow.

"Nothing." She spoke quickly as a light blush appeared on her cheeks. He smirked and leaned forward, she was definitely lying.

"Tell me, Little Bird." He asked as he took her hand into his and grinned at her.

"It's really nothing." Raven sighed, but didn't make a move to remove her hand from his. Jason raised his eyebrow and his smile grew on his face. She rolled her eyes again and sighed and he knew that he had broken her. "I just said that it would be no real competition if the waiter really was interested." She muttered and Jason's chest swelled with pride and affection.

"You're goddamn right, Sunshine." He remarked and Raven shook her head, but he could see a small smile on her face. The night continued on with conversation flowing easily between them and they found they had a lot in common, which surprised Raven. She had to admit, by the time the bill came she actually did enjoy herself. Jason was smart and witty, he kept up with her quips and didn't at all appear intimidated by Raven's intelligence.

"Shall we?" Jason smirked as he offered his arm to Raven. They walked out of the bistro together and it was nice enough night out that they decided to walk through the park. A breeze picked up and Raven found herself clinging onto Jason's arm to stay warm. Jason noticed this too and couldn't help but feel happy about this.

"This is weird." Raven said and Jason chuckled.

"You think too much, Sunshine. Why can't you just enjoy this?" He asked.

"Because you're a villain, one that has made himself a rival to the Titans, and here I am dating you. It's weird. It's wrong." She spoke the last spot softly and Jason frowned. He stopped walking and turned to face her and put his hand on her face.

"Hey," He said as she looked up at him. "I know this is…complicated, but I like you and I know you like me. Can't we just accept that for now and figure out everything out later?" He asked and Raven's eyebrows furrowed together as she thought about what he was saying. There were so many things that caused Raven to want to run away. If she were honest with herself, she knew she could get past the whole Red-X thing, but it was more so Jason's past and his relationship with Dick and Bruce that had her concerned. She could feel his anger whenever either was brought up and it concerned her. But, she did find herself liking Jason and she just wasn't ready to let that end.

"Okay," She whispered. Jason smiled softly and stroked her cheek with his thumb.

"Thank you." He told her and she could feel the relief and sincerity in his emotions. His eyes softened and she stared up at him with curiosity and admiration. She really did like his green eyes. He leaned down and slowly captured her lips in a searing kiss. Raven wrapped her arms around his neck and he moved his to wrap around her back and waist. She intertwined her fingers into his inky hair as he swiped his tongue across her lips. Raven opened her mouth and their tongues began a sultry dance with each other. She even moaned as he pressed their bodies closer together. They eventually pulled apart from the lack of air and Jason laid a soft kiss on her forehead.

"One step at a time, Little Bird." He murmured against her hair.


	4. Chapter 4

_**(A/N): Hello! Back at it again! But before I start let me answer some questions that someone had since they seem so adamant about them:**_

" _ **Why would do they leave the city defenseless?"**_

 _ **First and foremost, I mentioned already that there wasn't much going on in Jump before the time of the gala. Jump is not exactly Gotham where there's a villain lurking around every single corner. And second, even if something were to happen—which it didn't; my story, my rules—the Titans have a million friends (in case you didn't catch that last episode) who could cover for them.**_

" _ **How did Raven even know Jason? Jump is far away from Gotham. Why would she go to his funeral?"**_

 _ **So for this the best way to answer is that I'm going off the information of the comics more so the actual show. I'm still following the story arch of the show (almost), but most of the things and information, I'm pulling from the actual comic books. Just because in the show Batman was never shown and for some reason it seemed like Dick had beef with him (I'm not really sure why it seemed like Robin was so anti-Batman [maybe the show didn't have the rights to use Batman or something] or if anyone else actually felt that way too, also the Robin in the show is way too serious to be Dick Grayson, just saying) doesn't mean Dick wasn't close with Bruce after he left to join the Titans.**_

 _ **In the comics, Dick would still talk to Bruce after he joined the Titans and frankly that makes more sense to me because why would he just abandon his mentor and be like, "fuck you, I have better things to do now,"? The Titans are all best friends or at least very close to each other, and I mention that while Raven has never**_ _personally_ _ **met Jason she knew who he was because as you can imagine Dick (in the comics, not the show) is pretty open with talking about his life to people who actually know him as Robin and Dick Grayson. And why would she attend his funeral if she didn't know him? Well because she—and the rest of the team— were there to support Robin and Batman. Simple answer—friends being there for friends during a difficult time.**_

 _ **Anyways, that finishes up my question and answer time to that one person. Not trying to hate or seem like I'm mad at him/her, just answering his/her questions to make myself more clear of the intentions of this story for him/her and for the rest of you. Also, I'm sorry if there are typos please take it with a grain of salt. This is not a published book guys and I am only human—there are going to be some typos, I apologize now for them. Enough of my rambling though, enjoy the new chapter!**_

* * *

Raven was on the roof meditating while the sun rose. It has been weeks since her first date with Jason and plenty of dates have followed. They were at the point where they practically saw each other every day, especially if they weren't busy. She was increasingly falling more and more for him and while her worries about his criminal activities have been reduced she still was concerned about his past, but she decided to live in blissful ignorance for now. Raven heard the door to the roof open behind her and opened her eyes. She knew it was Dick, seeing how they were the only early risers on the team.

"Hey Rae, haven't seen you around lately." Dick commented as he sat on the ground next to her.

"Sorry, I've been trying to not stay as cooped up in the tower lately." It was only a half-lie, she didn't want to stay cooped up in the tower, but that was only because she wanted to see Jason.

"Can't blame you, just remember we're going to need you for missions from time to time." Dick grinned and Raven smiled softly back at him. They sat in companionable silence and watched the sunrise together. She silently observed the slight similarities between Dick and Jason. It didn't take a genius to see that Batman picked a similar look for his Robins. Jason and Dick both had short black hair and were both tall, but Jason had broader shoulders than Dick and was generally more built than him. Dick was taller than Jason and had leaner muscles showcasing their different upbringings and skills. Dick had blue eyes while Jason's were green, but they both had infectious smiles. Bruce sure knows how to pick lookers.

"You seemed happier when we were in Gotham." She told him. Raven did notice that Dick's happiness seemed to rise while they were in Gotham. She also knew that Dick was itching to go solo or at least return to Gotham where he could be with Batman. Dick, of course, hadn't told her these things, but from her observations she could piece it together.

"I always like visiting home." He commented nonchalantly. Dick was on edge with Raven bringing up the topic of Gotham. If he were honest with himself, he wanted to be in Gotham with his family. Not that his friends here weren't family, but it was different. He would even like to venture into Blüdhaven since Gotham is more so Bruce's area and he didn't feel like crowding him, even though he could use the help—he would never admit that though. It all didn't matter though, he needed to be with his team to lead them and protect Jump City.

"Hmm," Raven hummed before slowly lowering herself onto the ground next to Dick. "Tim was asking me a lot of questions about the team. Almost seems like he wants to join." She told him. Dick didn't say anything because he already knew that Tim was practically begging to be on the Titans along with others—Wonder Girl and Superboy to be specific. They were getting old, all of them, and he could tell some of his friends were itching to branch out beyond the team. Some of them were offered positions within the League—Cyborg, Raven, and himself specifically.

Cyborg seemed eager to join the League, Dick had observed how happy he looked whenever he talked with the Atom or the Flash. Cyborg wouldn't leave Dick or Raven—mostly Raven though. Victor didn't want to be the first one to make a move and from the way he treated Raven, Dick was sure that he wouldn't join the League unless Raven did too. He would be a great addition to the League, him and Raven. Raven provided another outlet to worlds that were completely out of their understanding and she was levelheaded and highly trained. He didn't know, however, if Raven wanted to join the League, she was aware of the offer, but she hasn't exactly been vocal about her opinion. He didn't want to join the League, he never really felt welcomed there even though he was completely. The League seemed more like Batman's place, not his.

Batman didn't want Starfire on the League because "she is too emotionally volatile to handle the situations we're put in." Dick had to agree, but he didn't tell her that even though they dated for years. Bruce never seemed to care for her that much to begin with, but again, he kept that information to himself. Kori seemed to grow tired of being here though, even though she never admitted it, but things had been strained ever since Dick broke up with her. While they remain professional, he could tell that Kori was still bitter about their relationship ending. Beast Boy—Changeling, Dick had to keep reminding himself to call Gar that now, was still a kid and seemed more than comfortable in Jump City. Dick always wondered though if it was because he had hoped that Terra would return. After her statue had disappeared and Gar saw that girl who looked like her, Dick believed Gar was still convinced that she was alive.

"Yeah, I think he's getting tired of dealing with Bruce." Dick joked and Raven smiled softly while she felt a pang in Dick's emotional state.

"Barbara was nice, I never actually had a full conversation with her before." Raven grinned and she could see Dick's cheeks turn a shade of pink. She had no clue that Dick and Barbara have been in a long game of cat and mouse and that everyone in the "Bat Family" was rooting for them to get together. She, of course, found this out from Jason.

" _You should see them, Little Bird. It's like a blind person could tell they love each other. Grayson needs to get his head out of his ass and finally ask out Babs."_

"Yeah, she's great," Dick said gruffly and Raven had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. She didn't really believe Jason at first when he brought it up, but she could clearly see that Dick does have some infatuation with the Commissioner's daughter.

"You know, Dick, I will support you in whatever you decide, but you should stop thinking about others so much. We can take care of ourselves." Raven said as she stood up. Dick looked up at her and she merely gave him a small smile before leaving the roof. Dick looked back out towards the city and sighed.

Raven was in her room later that night when red lights began flashing. She quickly threw on her cloak and flew into the main room where the rest of the team was. She hovered beside Cyborg while Nightwing typed away on the computer. Suddenly Raven's chest filled with dread when a picture of Red-X popped up. _Really Jason?_

"Red-X is at it again. Apparently he's back in Jump. We got to stop him before he gets away with three Faberge Eggs." Nightwing addressed his team and they all nodded before making their way towards the garage. Raven really didn't want to go off and fight Jason, but this was a part of it all. He was still Red-X and she was still a part of the Titans. They had jobs to do and in their line of work, they were sure to cross paths. She was almost sure that he was doing this on purpose. They were at the museum where the eggs were soon enough and they all burst in to see Red-X leaning against the now empty display case, whistling casually. Raven wanted wring his neck.

"Aw, miss me kiddies?" Red-X chuckled and Nightwing grated his teeth.

"Titans go!" He called out before they all rushed to ambush him. Red-X quickly flipped onto the display case and fired off several x-shaped projectiles. Raven shot out her black magic and blocked all the projectiles and Red-X couldn't help but chuckle again. He flipped off the case, but he didn't have long to stay grounded because Starfire started launching star-bolts at him. Red-X continued to back flip to avoid them all before he skidded across the floor and threw the same goop that trapped her last time. Starfire avoided it and it exploded against the wall and she fired beams out of her eyes towards him.

"Testy, testy," Red-X mocked as he easily avoided her attack. Changeling pounced at him as a tiger and Red-X ducked and grabbed onto the fur on his stomach. He lifted him up and threw him against the wall, surprising Changeling. Red-X straightened out, but quickly ducked when Cyborg's laser came at him. Nightwing ran towards Cyborg and used him as a launching pad to fly through the air with his staff. Red-X used his forearms to block the blow and quick grabbed the middle of Nightwing's staff. However, he was surprised when it pulled apart and became two battle sticks. Red-X took a hit to the stomach, but quickly avoided the one aimed for his head.

"Seems like Bird Brain has some new tricks," Red-X said as Nightwing glared him. "So do I." He said before throwing down a smoke pellet and blinding the Titans. Changeling morphed into a pterodactyl and began flapping his wings to clear the area of the smoke. Nightwing scanned the areas, but felt a hard kick land on his back. He quickly recovered though and blocked Red-X's next hit. Red-X, however, was quickly blasted away from Nightwing by Cyborg and he slid across the floor. He got his grip back quickly and flipped back onto his feet before launching another projectile towards Cyborg.

It landed on Cyborg's cannon and Cyborg smirked. "That old trick isn't going to work on me anymore." He grinned and Red-X chuckled.

"Think again, R2D2." Cyborg looked at his arm-cannon to see it covered in the same goop that Red-X fired at Starfire. Cyborg cursed and Red-X smirked before the X's on the back of his hands enlarged and became weapons. Red-X charged after Nightwing and he met him head on. They exchanged numerous blows, but each one was met with the other. Neither of them were able to land a hit on the other, until Starfire fired at Red-X. He dodged it by jumping up in the air and swung his leg around to kick Nightwing in the head.

"I'm getting a little tired of you." Red-X muttered before throwing a projectile towards Starfire. She was distracted having been somewhat the cause of Nightwing being hit and was soon wrapped in the red material. She fell towards the ground, but Raven softened her descent and gently placed her on the ground. Changeling growled before morphing into a wolf and running after Red-X.

"C'mon, puppy dog." He smirked before ducking to avoid one of Nightwing's batons. Red-X elbowed Nightwing in the stomach and kicked Changeling in the face. He ducked down on the floor and swept his leg and knocked Nightwing onto the floor. He grabbed Changeling—who had morphed back to his human form—and threw him at Nightwing sending them skidding across the floor before crashing into a glass case. Raven flew at him and sent a box flying towards him. Red-X avoided it before fazing away and appearing behind Raven. He wrapped his arms around her and landed on the ground with a soft thud and her struggling in his grip.

"Raven!" Starfire yelled as she struggled against her restraints. Red-X chuckled before pressing the button on his belt and disappearing again with Raven. They appeared on the roof of the museum before Red-X removed his arms from her. Raven whirled around and glared at him as he ripped off his mask.

"Hey Sunshine," Jason grinned and Raven pushed him.

"What do you think you're doing?" She gritted through her teeth.

"My job." He laughed and Raven rolled her eyes. "What? I went easy on your friends, Little Bird." He said as he walked towards her with open arms. "You have no idea how much I wanted to punch Grayson's nose in." She felt his burst of rage again and frowned.

"You did this on purpose, didn't you?" She asked.

"What do you mean? I had a job and did it." He said innocently while twirling his mask around his finger.

"Yeah, okay," She muttered sarcastically. "Don't lie to me. You could have done this before our attention was drawn to it. Now you've put yourself right back on Nightwing's radar." She told him.

"Good," Jason shrugged, but Raven just glared at him. "Alright, alright, I was a little bored and decided to have some fun. Plus, I got to see you in the process and let me tell you, you look damn fine when you're trying to kick my ass." He smirked as he approached and Raven couldn't help but grin.

" _Try_?" She asked.

"C'mon Sweetness, you didn't exactly stop me back there." He chuckled but quickly stopped when he was wrapped up in her black magic and rendered immobile.

"Let's just say you weren't the only one holding back." She smirked at him and he laughed.

"You have no idea how turned on I am right now." He told her and she just rolled her eyes. She suddenly heard the sound of her team approaching and sent Jason flying off the roof without so much as a goodbye.

"Raven!" Nightwing called out as he and the rest of Titans stormed the roof. "Are you okay?" He asked once he noticed that Raven was alone on the roof.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She reassured him. Jason grabbed onto a streetlamp before swinging himself off and landing in a dark alley. He slipped his mask on and shook his head with laughter.

"Warn a guy next time, Little Bird." He muttered as he heard the muffled sounds of the Titans talking on the roof. He reached down towards his belt when he noticed the eggs gone from his side. He looked down and felt around himself before chuckling. "Oh…you're good, Sweetness."

"Got the eggs." Raven told Nightwing as she held out the bag to him and smiled softly at him. "You probably should tell the curator to do a better job at keeping them safe." She said and Nightwing nodded with a small, proud smile on his face. Yes, Raven—the girl, was dating Jason—the boy, but Raven—hero was still very much in charge of making sure Red-X—the villain didn't get away with the things he stolen.


	5. Chapter 5

_**(A/N): The time has come. "What time," you ask? Time for me to head back to university! Joy. This means that I probably will update less frequently, but I'm going to seriously try to get through this story because I'm really enjoying it as much as you guys (hopefully). So, please excuse me if things tend to slow down after this or after the next update. Anyways, enjoy the next chapter!**_

* * *

Raven walked into Jason's apartment the day after the heist and stopped when she saw that Jason was shirtless with a towel hanging around his neck and guzzling down some water dripping in sweat. She suddenly felt very warm and cursed herself for wearing a hoodie.

"That was unfair yesterday." He told her as he crushed the water bottle in his hand and tossed it into a trashcan.

"You were the one who decided to have the Titans show up and like you said, I was just doing my job." She smirked and Jason couldn't help but smile back. "Was your client upset?" She asked as she walked past him and towards his couch. He couldn't stop himself from checking out her ass as she walked by, but he quickly cleared his throat and rested his hands on the back of the couch, behind Raven.

"Nah, I told him that I don't take jobs in Jump anymore because of the Titans, but he was _so_ adamant about having me perform the job. So I gave him a non-refundable contract which he happily signed. When I told him that you guys stopped me, he pitched a fit, but I told him he signed the contract." He explained and Raven tilted her head back and looked up at him.

"You stopped taking jobs in Jump?" She raised her eyebrow.

"Yeah, as much as I love seeing you flying around in that leotard, I rather not have to deal with you and your friends everywhere I go." He told her before leaning down and kissing her forehead. "I'm going to shower." He said and she smiled softly at his affection. "Care to join?" He asked and Raven just rolled her eyes causing Jason to chuckle.

Raven sat on his couch as she heard the shower turn on. She stared at the documentary on the screen, but wasn't paying attention. She and Jason have been dating for the better part of two months now and she couldn't deny the sexual tension between them. It has only gotten worse as she found herself more comfortable around him. She wasn't a virgin and she knew that Jason wasn't either, but this would bring about a whole new level for their relationship. She couldn't decide if she was ready for it or not, but she couldn't deny that she wanted Jason in a physical sense. Besides a few heated make-out sessions that had some groping, they hadn't exactly pushed those boundaries. She knew deep inside her that Jason was waiting for her to make the move, but could she?

Jason decided then to walk out of his bedroom in a t-shirt and jeans while rubbing a towel over his hair. He planted himself next to Raven on the couch and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She threw her legs over his lap and he was quick to put his other hand on her knee.

"Plans for today?" She asked.

"I actually miss seeing you in that gown from the gala," He commented. "How would you feel about getting all gussied up and going out for nice date?" He grinned as he skimmed his knuckles up and down her arm.

"Paint the town red and all that jazz?" She teased and Jason nipped at her cheek making her laugh. "Fine, but just this one time. You know I don't like dressing up." She told him and he kissed her chastely.

"Can't make any promises." He smirked. Raven got up and he grabbed her hand and pouted. "Where are you going?" He asked.

"You want me to get all 'gussied up,' can't exactly do that here." Raven told him and he reluctantly let her go.

"I'll be picking you up then." Jason said as he walked her to the door.

"Uh, I can't exactly have you appearing at the Tower." She said narrowing her eyes towards him.

"I'll figure it out, Little Bird. Just worry about looking beautiful tonight." He kissed the top of her head. "Although, there won't be much to worry about."

"Could you be anymore cheesy?" She asked.

"Yes, plenty." He smirked. Raven rolled her eyes before kissing his cheek and leaving his apartment to get ready for their date. Hours later, Raven sat in front of the vanity in her room attaching some drop earrings she had that Bumblebee gave her. She wore the same gown from the gala—seeing how it was about the only gown she had—and curled her hair before pushing it all to one side. She heard a knock on her door and felt Cyborg's presence and from sheer habit she let it slide open before realizing that she was dressed up.

"Hey Rae…" Victor slowed his speech when he saw Raven completely done up and looked at her confused. "Why are you dressed like that?" He asked pointing to her dress. Raven tried to think of some reason for her to be dressed up like this. She knew Victor knew she hated to dress up so she couldn't just use some lame excuse.

"Uh," Raven paused as Victor raised his eyebrow and crossed his arms. "I have a date." She finally admitted reluctantly.

"A date?" Victor's eyebrow shot up before he narrowed his eye sharply. "With who?" He asked suspiciously.

"No one you know." She quickly said as she stood up and walked over to her closet to get her heels.

"Must be someone special if you're dressing up." He commented.

"Yeah," She muttered but didn't give him any details. Victor was the only one on the team that knew about all the men she had dated/had feelings for so it was foreign to her to not tell him about Jason, but she couldn't exactly afford that luxury. She sat on her bed and strapped her heels onto her feet as Victor just stared at her. "Did you want something?" She asked looking back up at him.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to catch a movie with me, but you already have _plans_." He grinned at her, but Victor didn't like that she was being so vague and elusive about this whole situation. He knew Rae and she would never dress up unless it was required of her—like the gala or events with the Mayor—so this guy had to be something big if she seems to be dressing up so willingly. Plus, she always tells him about her dates, but this one was different apparently. He felt uneasy about the whole thing.

"Sorry," She looked up at him apologetically. "Do you think you need to fix your car up on Sunday?" She asked with a soft smile.

"Yeah," He laughed softly. "I'll see you then, I guess." He said as she nodded. "Be safe, Rae." He said and Raven got up and hugged him.

"I will be." She told him and he patted her on the back and left. She hated keeping Victor in the dark, but she could only imagine the repercussions if it got out that she was dating Red-X, specifically Jason Todd. A few short minutes later, Jason hopped into her room in a full tuxedo and grinned at Raven.

"You are gorgeous, Sunshine." He told her softly before placing a kiss on her temple. She smiled softly and let him wrap his arms around her. "You ready to go?" He asked and she nodded. They disappeared and were suddenly in an alley beside a fancy restaurant attached to one of the nicest hotels in Jump. She glanced down to see the belt from his suit was around his waist; she also noticed that the X that was on the center of the belt was gone. He probably decided to take it off to wear under his suit. "Told you I'd figure it out." He grinned before buttoning up his suit jacket.

They enjoyed their swanky dinner despite the odd looks they received for being the youngest pair there. Raven was sure that the night was done after dinner, but Jason swept her away to the lounge where he quickly pulled her onto the dance floor. A soft ballad filled the air as a smooth lounge singer crooned along with the pianist. They danced for what seemed like hours, but it didn't matter that her feet were killing her or that they were the only ones dancing, she had to admit that being in Jason's arms with him looking down at her with so much affection made her heart jump inside her chest. She knew one thing was for certain though: she had come to a decision.

They finally returned to his apartment around midnight and after Raven pulled off her shoes she jumped into Jason's arms and kissed him heatedly. He was a little shocked at first, but quickly dropped his keys and wrapped his arms around her. Her legs were hitched around his hips and her fingers tangled themselves in his hair. Jason held her up and began to maneuver his way through his apartment all the while trying to feel her with his hands as much as possible. Their tongues melded and moved together while Raven tried to push herself as close as humanly possible to him.

"Shit—Sweetness," Jason breathed as he put Raven down on her feet as they stood inside his bedroom. They were both panting and he couldn't but groan at her appearance. Her hair was already disheveled and her lips were swollen and red from their kissing. Jason already felt himself getting hard. "You sure about this? There's no stopping me once we start." He whispered as he cradled her face in between his hands.

"Yes," She told him putting one of her hands on top of one of his. "I want you, Jason, in everyway possible." She spoke earnestly and her voice was laced with conviction and determination. Shit, he didn't need to be told twice. Jason took off his jacket and belt, before lifting Raven back up into his arms and kissing her. He pushed her onto the bed and was immediately on top of her with his lips on her neck. Raven moaned as he pulled on the tie of her dress behind her neck. She quickly got rid of his tie and began unbuttoning his shirt, but before she could finish Jason sat up and pulled the top of her dress down to expose her bare breasts.

"Fuck," He cursed. "No bra?" His eyes flitted back up to her face and she sat up and grabbed the ends of his shirt.

"This dress isn't exactly the best for underwear." She muttered in between kisses on his exposed chest. He groaned as his mind quickly went south and he was quick to remove the rest of his shirt. He pushed her back onto the bed and Raven allowed her hands to trace his defined pecks and abs. Jason grabbed her wrists and pinned them above her head before placing a searing kiss onto her lips. He trailed his mouth down her throat and nipped at her collarbone before finally incasing one of her nipples in between his lips.

Raven gasped as her back arched towards his mouth. Jason let one of his hands trail down her side before cupping her other breast. He twirled his tongue around before pulling lightly with his teeth causing Raven to toss her head back in pleasure and fight against his hold on her hands. After applying the same treatment to her other breast, Jason let her hands go and she quickly sat up while grabbing his face and pulling it towards hers. She wrapped her legs around his waist and turned them so his back was to the bed and she was straddling him.

"Shit Little Bird," Jason said in surprise as she pulled on his bottom lip with her teeth. He was quick to grip her hips and let his fingers trail against the skin around her stomach and back. She was just so damn soft. He sat up and she scooted closer to his obvious erection. He began to nip and kiss along her neck and Raven ground her hips into his causing him to hiss in pleasure. He pulled back and looked up at Raven who had her elbows on his shoulders and her hands in his hair. His eyes were darker and glazed with a strong look of his lust. She noticed that his hair was standing on end with how many times she gripped and ran her hands through it, but he looked utterly sexy.

Jason slipped his hand down her hips and into her dress that was still wrapped around her hips and legs. His eyes flashed back up to Raven's when he felt her bare skin underneath his fingertips. She bit her lip, but the look she sent him was anything but coy. She gasped when she felt him trail a finger through her slit and tossed her head back when he circled her clit.

"Mmm, you're soaking, Sweetness," She could feel his smirk against her neck along with his heated breath. "Is this all for me?" He teased as he continued to rub lazy circles around her clit.

"J-Jason," Raven gasped as she ground her hips into his hands.

"Tell me what you want, Sunshine." He murmured while pressing his lips against her collarbone and neck.

"I—ah—I—" She couldn't form any form any words as Jason began to apply more pressure to her clit causing her body to shake with pleasure. It's never felt this good before.

"Do you want my fingers?" He asked letting his middle finger drag across her slit and tease her entrance. Raven pushed her hips down in an effort to gain further pleasure, but Jason chuckled and made sure to keep his finger away, but still tease her clit.

"Perhaps my tongue," His husky voice murmured against her ear before he traced her ear with his tongue. Raven was absolutely flushed at this point and Jason almost came from the sounds she was making. "Or would you rather have my cock?" He practically growled as he thrust his hips against her causing Raven to whimper.

"All of it," She gasped heavily. "I want all of you." She moaned and Jason smirked against her neck before tossing her back onto the bed. He was quick to pull her dress off her body and he gazed down at her naked form. She was glorious against his dark sheets with her hair fanned out around her in a violet halo. He couldn't believe that she was here with him, like this. He leaned down and kissed her passionately but tenderly.

"You have me, Little Bird, all of me." He whispered against her lips and she looked up at his emerald eyes and felt his affection and love for her that it almost made her chest explode.

"Please, I want you, Jason." She whispered softly as she held his face between her hands. The foreplay was over. Jason nodded before stripping off his pants and positioning himself in between her legs. Raven ran her hands from his chest to his face and he turned his head to kiss her palm. He slowly eased his way inside of her until she felt completely filled.

"Fuck," Jason groaned. "You're so fucking tight." He murmured before he began to slowly thrust his hips. He rolled his hips so that he would brush against her clit and that caused Raven to drag her nails down his back.

"Faster," Raven moaned and Jason quickly began to thrust faster. He grabbed one of her legs and put it onto his shoulder while holding the other in the crook of his arm. The new position allowed him to sink deeper into Raven and his eyes almost rolled back into his head from pleasure. Jason suddenly felt wrapped up in arousal and extreme pleasure and soon realized that it was Raven projecting her emotions. He began to pound into her harder chasing her orgasm just so he could feel her. He wanted to feel all of her. He dropped her legs and his hands were beside her head and he leaned down and kissed her roughly. Raven wrapped her arms and legs around him and she could feel her lower stomach burn. Feeling the sudden rise in her emotions, Jason pulled away and leaned towards her ear.

"You going to cum, Sweetness?" He panted into her ear and he bit her earlobe. Raven nodded furiously and he gripped her hair into one of his hands. He pulled back up and brought her with him before she was fully seated on his cock and his lap.

"Jason!" Raven moaned wrapping her arms around his shoulders. He gripped her hips tightly and thrust up into her with a relentless force as she whimpered and moaned in his ears.

"Cum for me, Raven, _now_!" Raven exploded around him and soon Jason followed her off the cliff. He collapsed back onto the bed and she fell on top of him, both of them trying to catch their breath.

"Holy shit!" Jason exclaimed and Raven laughed breathlessly. "Did you break my lamp?" He asked and Raven looked over to see the lamp on his bedside table in absolute shambles. She also noticed that the sheets that were carefully tucked into the sides of the mattress were now strewn across the bed and around them.

"Um, my powers tend to get a little of control during particularly emotional moments." She explained while blushing.

"I didn't need a lamp anyways." He told her before kissing her softly. She smiled and snuggled into his side and they both soon drifted off to sleep.

Raven left Jason's the next afternoon (after a particularly steaming shower) and returned to the tower. She appeared in her bedroom and hung up her gown before changing out of Jason's clothes and into her regular lounge clothes. She walked into the kitchen where she saw Gar and Victor playing a video game. She greeted them and made herself a cup of tea.

"Alright, I'm going to hit the store since _someone_ forgot to get my tofu!" Garfield said while glaring at Victor. Victor rolled his eyes and Raven waved goodbye to Gar as she sipped on her tea.

"How was last night?" Vic asked as he got up from the couch and walked towards Raven.

"Good." She told him with a soft smile on her face. Victor didn't say anything and just nodded before moving towards the door.

"Oh I almost forgot," Victor said before turning around and tossing a red X onto the kitchen counter. The blood in Raven's veins ran cold as she looked at the X that must have fallen out of Jason's belt before she looked up at Victor warily. "Your boyfriend dropped this."


	6. Chapter 6

_**(A/N): Uh-oh! Here comes Big Brother Cy! Also, I'll be returning to college tomorrow so please forgive me if updates are less frequent. I'll definitely try to update as much as I can because I love this story and you guys!**_

* * *

"Victor," Raven said uneasily. "I can explain." She told him.

"What are you thinking, Raven? Red-X? Seriously?" He hissed and Raven quickly surrounded them in her dark magic and transported them to the roof.

"It's…complicated." She sighed and Victor began to pace in front of her.

"This is about the stupidest thing you've ever done! How can you trust this guy? This guy is one of Dick's greatest nemeses! How could you be doing this?" Victor yelled.

"Don't you think I know that?" She asked crossing her arms. "And I do trust him. Empath, remember?"

"Rae! This is so crazy!" Victor exclaimed. "How would you feel if I started dating Jinx?" He asked.

"That's different." She stated.

"How? She's a villain and so is Red-X! Do you know how much you're endangering the team by dating this fool?" He asked.

"Vic, I know this all, I tried to avoid him for the longest time because of all the things you're worried about. But I do," She paused and swallowed. " _Care_ about him. I can feel what he's feeling and I know he feels the same way if not more." She told him staring up at him. They continued to stare at each other while trying to get a read off each other. Victor eventually sighed and shook his head.

"This is fucking crazy, Rae." He sighed. "I'm worried about you and as much as I know that you can take care of yourself, I'm still worried. This guy is able to take all of us down so easily. How do you know he won't do the same to you?" He asked.

"I know, Victor, I know him." She said.

"I want to meet him." He demanded.

"Not happening." She retorted.

"Then maybe Dick would like to know about my new discovery." He threatened and Raven narrowed her eyes towards him.

"His identity is important. I can't let you know who he is." She told him.

"What's to say he doesn't know ours, Raven? Hmm? Did you tell him all our names or did he weasel his way in?" He accused.

"I would never do that to you guys. He doesn't know who you guys are beyond your hero personas. I would never tell him about you guys." She told him. So it was half a lie, but she never told him who they were, he already knew.

"I don't like that you're dating some criminal that is one of the toughest people we've come across. I don't trust him and even if I trust you, I refuse to believe that Red-X is some nice guy who just so happens to steal things and fuck with us." He scowled and Raven sighed.

"We keep our personal lives separate from business. I did take back the eggs from him the last time we faced him. It was no skin off my back taking it back from him. He even told me that he stopped taking jobs in Jump because he rather not have a run in with us everywhere he goes." She told him.

"Okay, yeah, that's believable." Victor rolled his eyes. "He's a deceiving asshole who only looks out for himself, how do you know that he isn't pulling your chain? What if this is one large job for him to finally get rid of us?" He asked.

"I know him, Victor. I told you this. I feel his emotions and no one and I mean _no one_ can hide their true feelings from me." She said and he glared at her.

"I'm meeting him, Raven or I'm telling the team. You let him know that." Victor told her with a strong sense of finality in his voice. Raven frowned as she watched Victor leave the roof and she quickly transported herself back to Jason's apartment. Jason was sitting in his living room watching a football game when Raven appeared in front of him.

"Damn Sweetness, I need a break before we go at it again." He grinned as he stood up.

"Cyborg knows." She told him and Jason's smile dropped from his face. "He doesn't know who you are, but he knows I'm seeing Red-X and he's insisting on meeting you otherwise he's telling the rest of the team."

"I know he's your best friend and everything, but there's no way in hell that's happening." Jason told her.

"Jason, he's serious." She told him.

"He's bluffing." He scoffed.

"He's worried about me and he doesn't trust what I have to say about us. He wants to see for himself if you're really a decent guy." She explained.

"How do you know he won't snitch as soon as he realizes it's Jason Todd you're seeing?" He asked with his eyebrow raised and a scowl on his face.

"I know Cyborg, our friendship transcends the team and if I tell him not to, he won't." Raven said.

"If you're such good friends why not tell him to go fuck himself and that he's not meeting me." He said angrily and Raven frowned.

"Jason, I know you're worried about Dick—"

"I don't give a fuck about Grayson." He spat and she could feel his anger consume him in that moment.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked and Jason frowned.

"No, it doesn't matter." He muttered, but she could feel his emotions and knew that it did matter. Raven decided that silence was the best method to deal with Jason right now so she sat down in the arm chair beside the couch. Jason glared at his window before sighing and running his hands through his hair aggressively.

"Sunshine, I'm sorry," He murmured before moving and kneeling on the ground in front of her. He placed his hands on her knees and looked up at her. She didn't need to feel his emotions, she could already see the conflict in his eyes. "I don't like…so many people knowing about me." He told her.

"How many people actually know your identity?" She asked softly.

"Just you…and the League of Assassins, but they're not a problem." He sighed. "I'm dead to the world, you gotta understand that it is difficult for me revealing to someone that I am, in fact, alive." He told her and she wrapped her hand around his.

"I understand, but it's either Cyborg knowing or the entire team. I tried to dissuade him, but he's already upset that I'm dating Red-X. He thinks you're just playing me." She told him and he frowned.

"You know that I'm not, Little Bird." He whispered kissing her hand and she smiled sadly.

"I know, but Cyborg doesn't and as much as I want to avoid this entire situation, I've never seen him so serious about something." She murmured. Jason sighed heavily before looking up at Raven who looked resigned.

"I don't like this," He told her. "But I'll meet him." He said and Raven squeezed his hand.

"Thank you." She told him sincerely.

"Could have been worse," He grinned. "Maybe I'd have to meet Beast Boy."

* * *

"Don't be a jerk, alright?" Raven told Victor as they walked through Jason's apartment building. Raven wanted to meet somewhere that was neutral ground, but Jason knew shit would pop off as soon as Victor saw him.

"No promises." Victor told her and Raven scowled at him. "I am mildly impressed that he's allowing me into his apartment." He said and she nodded. They stopped in front of his door and Raven knocked three times. She could feel her heart pounding against her ribcage, Vic's sense of curiosity and doubt, and Jason's nervousness and dread. She really wished that this wasn't happening. Jason opened the door and she could feel Victor's shock skyrocket immediately.

"What the fu—"Jason and Raven pulled him into the apartment before slamming the door. Jason watched as all the locks secured themselves back in place before turning around and staring at an uncomfortable Raven and a shocked Victor.

"Nice to see you again, Victor." Jason said and Victor shook his head.

"No way, this isn't possible. Who the hell are you?" Victor asked.

"Jason Todd." He responded simply.

"No, no, no, Jason died years ago." Victor said shaking his head. "There's no way you're him."

"I am and I would appreciate it if you'd keep that to yourself." Jason told him.

"What the hell, man? Did you fake your death or something? Bruce and Dick were so torn up about your death." Victor said and Jason frowned.

"No, I didn't fake my death. I'm not really sure how I survived or came back to life, but I did and now I'm here. I don't want them to know that I'm alive. I don't want anyone to know. The only reason you do is because you were so _adamant_ about meeting me." He explained doing a fine job at keeping the malice out of his voice, but Raven could feel his anger.

"This is a lot crazier than I had originally thought." Victor muttered as he began to pace back and forth. Jason looked over to Raven who only shrugged her shoulders. "So," He said turning to face them. "You two are dating." He said motioning between them.

"Yes," Raven said as Jason moved over to stand next to her. "And like Jason said, we'd really appreciate it if you wouldn't tell everybody about this." She told him.

"Okay, okay, whatever, I won't mention Jason Todd being alive to the rest of the team, but can we talk about the fact that you're dating a criminal?" Vic asked.

"Well, I wouldn't really consider myself a criminal. I just give to—"

"Shut up about your Robin Hood theory. There's already a Robin Hood persona in the League." Raven told him and Jason chuckled. "We don't let our relationship interfere with our work, Victor. I told you that I took the eggs back from him last time." She told Victor.

"Yeah, okay, that was messed up. She used her feminine wiles against me before chucking me off a roof." Jason said and Victor smirked before extending his fist out towards Raven.

"Nice," He grinned as Raven bumped her fist against his. "Okay, get out of here, Rae. I need to talk to your boy." Victor told her.

"What? Not happening." Raven said as she glared up at Victor.

"It's alright, Sunshine. Here," He said handing her twenty dollars. "Why don't you pick up a pizza? I'm sure Victor just wants to kick my ass to make sure I don't hurt you." Jason said as Victor smirked.

"I'm not leaving you two alone." Raven said firmly.

"Rae, if you don't leave I'll tell Jason about the day that shall remained unspoken." Vic threatened and Raven gaped at him while Jason's interest piqued.

"What day? What happened?" Jason asked and Victor smirked at Raven who glared at him.

"Shut up, Victor. I'm leaving and if I found out you told him, you'll be in a world of pain." She said and Vic smiled down at her. She stomped out of the apartment and an awkward silence formed between Victor and Jason.

"Alright, lay it on me." Jason sighed as he turned to look at Victor.

"Look, I don't understand why you're alive, why you decided to be Red-X, why you refuse to let anyone know you're alive, and why you feel the need to do what you do. I don't even really want to know, but I do want to know why you want to be with Raven." He said crossing his arms over his chest.

"I love her." Jason said like it was the most obvious answer in the world. "She's important to me and has grown to have her own place in my heart. You don't know my past and neither does Raven…yet, but she really has brought me peace." He explained.

"Does she know that?" Victor asked.

"She doesn't need me to tell her. She already knows." He shrugged.

"You do realize that this is going to get more complicated in the future?" Victor said and Jason sighed.

"I know, but if she feels even a fraction of what I feel for her, then we'll be okay." Jason said. Victor nodded and patted Jason on the shoulder twice before gripping his shirt and pulling him up to his face.

"You fucking hurt her and I swear to God and every other higher power, I'll see to it that you actually stay dead this time." Victor threatened and Jason nodded slowly. He knew he could take on Victor, but seeing the actual anger and intent his eyes managed to strike a slight amount of fear into him. Raven returned shortly to see Jason and Victor watching some sitcom on television while talking about different forms of technology. The rest of night was casual and thankfully drama free and while it didn't seem like Victor and Jason were best friends they were at least civil with each other.

Jason said goodbye to them before returning to his couch and collapsing onto it. While he seemed like he could trust Victor not to tell anyone, he had said something that had struck a chord with him. Things couldn't stay as simple between him and Raven like they were now. She doesn't know about his past and while he didn't want to tell her—to force himself to go to that place in front of her, he knew she had a right to know. He had to be realistic and knew that at some point, Grayson and probably Bruce will find out that he is alive and that will throw a giant wrench into their relationship. He didn't want Raven to deal with his shit, but he didn't want to let this end between them. Jason sighed before tossing his head back against the couch. He had a lot to figure out.


	7. Chapter 7

_(A/N): Well, it sure has been a minute since I've updated, but I'm back with lemons and drama! Isn't that what you guys really want anyways?_

* * *

Jason was bored. Even worse, Jason was bored and Raven was off saving the city. He couldn't help but stare at the news report with a childish pout on his face. _Stupid Killer Moth._ He sighed heavily and sank further down onto his couch. He didn't even have any jobs he could busy himself with. Admittedly, business had slowed down when he told his clients that he didn't take jobs in Jump anymore. Jump and Gotham were where most of his clients lived and refusing jobs in both cities caused his workload to be a lot lighter as of late. Which he didn't mind—he had plenty of money to live off of and he got to spend more time with Raven. Jason sighed again and threw himself across his couch.

But worst of all, Jason was bored _and_ horny.

It didn't help that the news showed Raven flying around in _that_ _damn leotard_. Jason had all kinds of fantasies of fucking her in her uniform. That one night where she stopped him from getting the eggs sparked that moment and it was almost all that Jason could think about. Just pulling that material aside and shoving his cock into her—he groaned at the thought. Suddenly he shot up from his couch when an idea popped into his head. He turned back to the TV and a smirk spread across his face.

* * *

"We got him now!" Cyborg yelled as he blasted Killer Moth off his giant flying bug. Killer Moth exclaimed in pain as he flew off and hit the ground. He quickly got back on his feet where he was greeted by Nightwing kicking him in the face. Starfire and Changeling contained his moth and Raven flew up into the air and pulled fencing around a roof off. She wrapped the chain fencing around the moth before landing on the roof. Nightwing had Killer Moth pinned and handcuffed on the ground and his giant moth has been immobilized. This job was pretty much done.

Raven suddenly felt a hand come around her mouth and one around her waist. She was pulled back into a body and her eyes quickly became white with her magic. Before she could raise her hand and defend herself she was pulled back and pinned against a wall, away from anyone who could see her. Her magic surrounded her hand and she lifted a couple of paint cans that were on the roof beside her.

"Little Bird! Relax, it's just me!" Jason said as he lifted his mask off his face. Raven turned her head around to see Jason smirking at her. She dropped the paint cans and pushed back to have him release her. She whipped around and glared at him.

"What the hell are you doing here? If you didn't notice I'm a little busy!" She hissed and placed her hands on her hips.

"Grayson has Killer Moth down and I doubt your team needs you right now." He said as he took a step closer towards her. She narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms.

"What are you doing?" She asked. He tugged on her hood from the back making it fall from her face and leaned down to her ear.

"I happen to be watching the news where I saw this sexy hero flying around." He whispered huskily in her ear and, despite feeling a rush of heat flow through her, Raven frowned.

"You have a hand for that, you know?" She muttered as she trailed her hands up his chest and onto his shoulders. "You can't just show up while I'm on a mission and expect me to fuck you." She told him.

"Oh Sweetness," Jason chuckled trailing his hand down her spine before wrapping his arm around her waist. "I think you'd might find it worthwhile." He trailed his tongue around the shell of her ear and she bit her lip to fight back a moan. He moved his other hand up her stomach, briefly grazing her breast before finding purchase in her hair. "Your job is done, now let me do mine." He murmured with his lips ghosting over hers. He didn't give her a chance to respond because he quickly crashed his lips against hers.

He smirked when he heard her groan and quickly unlatched her cape, letting it pool around their feet. He never really was a fan of capes. He lifted her up and she quickly wrapped her legs around his waist before he pushed her against the wall. He trailed his lips down onto her neck and began to nip and suck there.

"I will end you if you leave a hickey on my neck." She gritted out and she could feel his breath against her neck as he chuckled.

"Sure thing, Little Bird." He said before grazing her nipple and squeezing her tit through her uniform. She moaned and tossed her head back before grinding her hips into his dick. Jason hissed before nipping at her other nipple with his teeth. She moved her hips along his cock again and he quickly released her legs from around his waist. Raven looked up at him confused before he pulled his cock out.

"I need to be inside you now." He practically growled before pushing her around and pinning her chest first into the wall. He grabbed her wrists in one hand before pinning them above her head. He hooked his fingers underneath the material of her uniform and pulled it to the side to reveal her glistening pussy. His mouth practically watered at the sight, but he didn't have time to stare so quickly plunged his cock into her. Raven gasped loudly and Jason's grip tightened on her wrists.

" _Fuck_ ," Jason gritted out as he tossed his head back. He let go of Raven's wrists, but quickly grabbed her hair into his hand and pulled back. She gasped and moaned as he started to thrust roughly into her. "You feel so good, so _tight_ ," He groaned.

"Jason," Raven moaned as she placed her hands flat against the wall.

"You love it, don't you?" Jason panted as his cock continued to piston into her. "My cock pounding into your sweet pussy? Yeah? You want it, Sweetness? You want my cock?" He gritted through his teeth and Raven moaned while her legs shook from the force—they were due to give out anytime now. Her communicator started to go off and her eyes widened, but Jason suddenly pulled out of her and turned her around.

"Ignore it." He told her before giving her a bruising kiss. He lifted her up and pressed her back against the wall before impaling her on his cock. Raven gasped into Jason's mouth and he bit her lip as the speed of his hips increased. Her hands clawed down his back as he buried his face into her neck.

"You close, Little Bird? You gonna cum?" Raven could only nod. Jason took one of his hands and brought it down in between them to rub rough circles into her clit.

"Jason!" Raven exclaimed as her climax washed over her. Jason growled when he felt her pussy clamp down on him and soon followed her with a long groan. They stayed wrapped around each other lazily as they caught their breaths before Raven's communicator went off again. Jason sighed heavily as Raven scrambled off of him and reached for her communicator. She quickly smoothed her hair down and made sure to keep Jason out of the shot before opening it.

" _Where did you go?"_ Nightwing asked and Jason frowned before flipping him off—even though he couldn't see him.

"I thought I saw a loose moth. Turned out to be a cat. I'll be back at the Tower soon if there isn't anything else." She told Nightwing simply.

" _No, that's it for the night. See you later."_ She quickly ended the call and raised her eyebrow at Jason.

"Grayson sure knows how to kill a mood." He said tucking himself back into his pants.

"No more crashing my missions to have sex." Raven told him before grabbing her hood and clipping it back on.

"C'mon," He drawled with a shit-eating grin. "You know it was fun." He wrapped his arms around her.

"No more, Jason." She told him firmly and he pouted, but she didn't waver. Jason sighed dramatically before looking at her.

"Fine, no more on-the-job sex." He agreed and she smiled softly up at him before placing a small kiss on his lips.

"But yes, it was fun." She said and he grinned.

* * *

"The word should have gotten to you, I don't take jobs in Jump anymore." Jason spoke through his work phone, which had a built in voice synthesizer to disguise his voice.

" _Yes, yes, but I believe you'll be more than happy to take this job."_ The man, Mr. Dobbs, said in a less than friendly tone.

"Is that so?" Jason muttered as he rolled his eyes. He was currently pacing the length of his apartment waiting to get off the phone with this guy so he could workout like he had originally planned.

" _How does 250,000 dollars sound to you?"_ Mr. Dobbs crooned.

"About a fifth of my checking account, and that's just my checking account." Jason was well off with the money he has made from previous cases and $250,000 was a drop in a lake for him.

" _$500,000?"_ Mr. Dobbs offered.

"That's cute." Jason snorted.

" _$600,000?"_ Mr. Dobbs grumbled.

"You're really wasting my time here, Mr. Dobbs. I don't have time to play auctioneer with you." He told him.

" _$800,000!"_ Mr. Dobbs exclaimed and Jason stopped his pacing. He smirked as he looked out his window.

"Now we're talking."

* * *

Raven was sitting on the couch reading a new book that Jason had recommended her while trying to drown out the noise of Gar and Victor shouting at each other. Kori was flying around the kitchen trying out her less than savory culinary skills. The guys were playing some game that obviously Raven didn't care for, but she's been neglecting her friends lately…even if all she did was read while in their presence. The sirens in the tower began to flash and Nightwing was quick to appear in the control room. Everybody was suited up within the second and a video of Red-X sneaking into a vault appeared. Raven narrowed her eyes and she looked over to Victor who frowned at her.

"Let's go." Nightwing said as they raced to the scene. Red-X was skulking along the walls of the vault before swinging himself in front of the numerous safe boxes. He began to pick the lock of safe box #258 and whistled casually as he waited for the lock to open. Suddenly a black projectile knocked his hand away from his locking tools and he sighed.

"Boy Wonder, you mind? I'm busy here." Red-X taunted as he turned to face all the Titans. Nightwing scowled before spinning his staff in his hand.

"Titans go!" Nightwing yelled as they all charged him. He was quickly wrapped around in dark magic and lifted into the air where he met with a very pissed Raven.

"'Sup Sweetness?" Red-X said and if Raven didn't know him like she did she wouldn't have heard the slight waver of his voice. "I would love to talk to you, but I got a job to do." He said before throwing an exploding pellet at her. Raven was blinded and Red-X dropped to the ground and quickly threw two X's at Changeling and Starfire rendering them immobile. He flipped back avoiding Cyborg's blast, but was quickly knocked back when Raven threw a chair at him.

' _Yeah, she's really pissed at me.'_ Jason thought as he skidded along the floor. Red-X grabbed four smoke pellets in between his fingers before throwing them on the ground, filling the vault with plumes of smoke. He quickly maneuvered himself around the room before stopping in front of box #258 and resumed his lock picking. He worked swiftly and skillfully and unlocked the box before he grabbed the file from the box. He tucked it away in his suit before slamming the box shut and running out of the vault. He made it to the roof before he heard a voice stop him.

"This is over, X!" Red-X turned around and glared at Nightwing staring at him with his battle batons in his hands. _'Fucking Grayson…'_ Red-X just shook his head and chuckled before fully turning his body and facing Nightwing.

"Nice try, Circus Boy, but this stint is done." Nightwing froze and Red-X used that as his opportunity to leave. He pressed the button on his suit and disappeared just as the rest of the team emerged on the roof.

"Did you get him?" Changeling asked. Nightwing's jaw hardened and he clenched his fists over his batons.

"No, he got away." He spoke softly.

"You okay?" Cyborg asked.

"Fine, back to the Tower." Nightwing ordered as they all followed him. Raven and Cyborg looked at each other uneasily but followed him nonetheless. Raven took a shower and got dressed for bed before there was a knock on her door. She let it slide open to see Victor standing there with a frown.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"Follow me," He told her and they walked towards the living room. The doors slid open and the screen was lit up with numerous photos and videos of Red-X. Dick was standing over the computer with his head down in defeat.

"Dick?" Raven asked as she walked into the living room. Dick didn't move and only hummed a response towards them. "What's going on?" She asked.

"He knows who I am, Rae." Dick muttered and a shiver went down her spine before she froze. "I don't know who the hell this guy is, but somehow he knows me!" He yelled in frustration as he slammed his fist against the table.

"How do you know?" She asked slowly. Dick let out a humorless laugh before turning around to face her.

"He called me 'Circus Boy' before disappearing." He said and Raven cursed Jason in her mind. "He must know that I'm a Grayson." He shook his head.

"Maybe it was an off-hand comment. You do flip around a lot." Victor said and Dick glared at him.

"Don't be stupid, Vic. This wasn't just some simple jab," Dick said before sitting down in front of the computer again. "This was personal." His eyes narrowed and Victor quickly tugged Raven out of the room and the doors closed behind him.

"You have to tell Dick that it's Jason." Victor whispered.

"No! Jason is very adamant about Dick and Bruce not knowing. I couldn't betray his trust like that." Raven told him.

"But what about, Dick? You can see he's about to go down into the rabbit hole again like he did with Slade, do you really want that to happen again?" Victor asked and Raven sighed. "What's his beef with them anyways?" He asked.

"I…" She paused before frowning. "I don't know." She murmured.

"Raven this is serious. I've turned a blind eye to all of this, but I can't let Dick go to that place again. I refuse it. This is even worse. Slade didn't even know his identity. He's going to drive himself mad with trying to figure out who Red-X is." Victor told and she sighed. "You're my best friend, Rae, but I can't keep this kind of information from Dick forever."

"You can't tell him." She told him.

"I won't, unless you do something about this. I'm not going to allow him to become crazy when I can prevent it." He told her and she nodded. "You better figure it out soon." He told her and Raven nodded.

She has put off this long enough and now it's directly affecting her team. She knew that Jason had some harboring anger towards Dick and Bruce, but never questioned it. She now knew that she needed to see him and learn about him and not just the cliff notes he has been giving her so far. There were so many things that she didn't know about him and she needed to know him if she was going to defend him. She walked back to her room and grabbed her civilian clothes. She was going to see Jason tonight.


	8. Chapter 8

_**(A/N):***_ _ **peeks out from under the covers**_ _ *** Um…hi guys! Sorry, I know it's been a while, but school has been really busy, but I'm back for another update and I hope you enjoy this one because we finally get to look into Jason's past! Also, I feel the need to update you on people's ages since I decided that Dick has had his birthday in the time span of the beginning of this story to now, so here you go!**_

 _ **Tim Drake (current Robin): 16**_

 _ **Garfield (Beast Boy/Changeling): 19**_

 _ **Jason (Red-X)/Raven/Kori (Starfire)/Barbara (Batgirl): 20 [Raven's closer to 21, while Jason just became 20]**_

 _ **Victor (Cyborg)/Dick (Nightwing): 21**_

 _ **Bruce(Batman): 39**_

 _ **Alfred: 62**_

* * *

Raven stood outside Jason's apartment waiting for him to open the door. He opened the door and looked extremely apologetic.

"Little Bird, I know you're upset, but this guy was paying—"

"I'm not here because of that." Raven interrupted as she walked into his apartment. Jason closed the door and looked over at her in confusion.

"Okay? What's going on then?" He asked.

"Your slip up has Dick going crazy trying to figure out who you are." She told him and Jason rolled his eyes.

"He's not going to." He muttered and Raven crossed her arms.

"You didn't know him when Slade was still alive. He became a mad man and I refuse to let that happen again." She said.

"What are you saying?" He asked narrowing his eyes towards her. Raven sighed heavily and shook her head.

"I don't know, but if something doesn't happen then Victor is going to tell Dick who Red-X is. He doesn't owe you anything." Raven said and Jason clenched his fists and fumed.

"I'll fucking tear him apart if he does." Jason threatened and Raven glared at him.

"You will do no such thing!" Raven sneered and Jason frowned.

"I'm not going to let my identity be known by Grayson!" Jason yelled and Raven whipped around and glared at him.

"Why! Why is it so important to you that Dick doesn't know? Why do you care if Bruce knows? Why don't you want them to know that you're alive?" Raven yelled back at him and Jason shook his head and waved his hand dismissively. He stalked over to the kitchen and rested his hands on the counter and Raven frowned. "Don't brush me off, Jason! I'm an empath, remember? I can feel the pain and anger inside of you every time you think about them. I feel your betrayal. I feel everything you feel." She told him as she walked up behind him and placed her hand in between his shoulder blades.

"Just because you feel my emotions, doesn't mean you understand them." Jason spat as his hands clenched into fists.

"Then help me understand." Raven spoke softly and turned him around so she could face him. She placed her hand on his face and stared into his green eyes—eyes filled with so much pain and hurt.

"I didn't matter to them." He whispered softly and Raven's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Joker is still out there and they replaced me with Drake. I didn't matter to them." He shook his head and moved away from Raven to the living room.

"What? You did matter to them. Bruce and Dick weren't the same after you." She said as she followed him at.

"No I wasn't!" He shouted. "I was just another place holder for Dick and then I got replaced. I never meant anything to him! I was just some charity case to him." He glowered and began pacing while he dragged his hands through his hair.

"Bruce did care about you, Jason. The only reason Tim is Robin now is because he gave Bruce an intervention. Bruce was becoming reckless and ruthless after your death and Tim noticed as a fan. Bruce only made him Robin because his parents died and they had formed a friendship after Tim pulled him out of the darkness that was because of you." Raven explained and Jason whipped around and glared angrily at Raven with watery eyes.

"Then why is that _fuck_ still alive!" Jason roared before furiously wiping his eyes. "I would have gone to the ends of the earth for that man if the same were done to him! I wouldn't have rested until I knew Joker was dead! If he killed Bruce," He exhaled heavily. "If he killed Bruce I would have tortured that motherfucker alive until he was begging for death." He murmured viciously.

"He doesn't kill people Jason—"

" _Bullshit_ Raven!" He shouted. "That's fucking bull! If I mattered to him he would have done something about it!" Tears started to trail down his face again. "Fuck!" He exclaimed as he covered his face with his hands and collapsed onto the couch. Raven's heart clenched inside of her chest and, even though his emotions saturated the room, she could feel her own pain and sadness at seeing him like this. Raven sat down next to him and wrapped her arms around one of his.

"I don't know why Joker is still alive, that is something you should ask Bruce. But don't you think for you second that they didn't care about you. Dick was ecstatic to see someone else take the Robin mantel after him and he thought you were the right person for the job. Bruce," Raven paused and wrapped her arms around him tighter. "He loved you so much, Jason. He was devastated after what happened. He didn't talk to Dick or Alfred for weeks after and he grew bitter as time went on. He's still not the same today. You were like a son to him, Jason. Don't doubt for a second that he didn't love you." She whispered softly.

Jason doubted her words, he has been thinking this way for so long that he didn't really think he could ever believe that Bruce cared about him. After all, he was the punk kid who was trying to steal his tires. Even when he was training with Talia, she never believed that Bruce could be like that. She told him that Bruce was weak for affection and it wasn't possible for him to be so casual about losing a loved one. Someone he considered a son. He could still remember the night he returned to Gotham to surprise Bruce, to let him know he's alive and be a part of his life again. He had been gone for a year after the incident and while Talia was upset to see him go, he knew his home was in Gotham…or so he thought.

 _Jason paid the cab driver and grabbed his duffle bag out of the truck. He began to trudge his way through the heavy snow to make his way up to the Wayne Manor. It was about a mile away from where he was dropped since he didn't want to tip off Bruce of his arrival. He had grown a lot in the year and he was no longer the gangly 15-year-old kid Bruce last saw him as. He had some muscle on him now and the training from Talia made him a better fighter._

 _He soon saw the familiar high walls of the manor and he quickly surveyed the area to make sure the camera wouldn't catch him. He slung his duffle bag behind his back and scaled the wall. He carefully dropped down on the opposite side and walked carefully towards the main house. He saw the light on in Bruce's study and made his way over towards the window. He looked inside and saw Alfred dusting casually in the room. He smiled softly as he missed Alfred._

 _Bruce walked in and Jason's smile widened at the sight of his mentor. He couldn't wait to surprise him, to catch him up on what happened during the year away, and to finally join him again as Robin. He scooted closer to the window to listen at what the two were talking about._

" _Late night again, Master Bruce?" Alfred asked casually._

" _I have to find him, Alfred." Bruce said and Jason's eyes narrowed. Find whom?_

" _I believe the Joker still remains on his hiatus." Alfred said and Jason's eyes widened. Joker was still alive? Jason was sure that Bruce would have ripped him to shreds after what happened to him._

" _I don't buy that for one second." Bruce muttered._

" _You haven't taken a break in quite some time, sir." Alfred said. "I might suggest one."_

" _I can't, Alfred." Bruce huffed. Jason smiled proudly knowing that Bruce wasn't about to rest until he found Joker because of this. Maybe together they can bring that son of a bitch down._

" _I worry for you, Master Bruce." Alfred voiced. "I feel like you may just kill the man."_

" _He's no man." Bruce growled. "And no, I'll never kill him." He told Alfred and Jason's eyes widened. He stumbled away from the window as hurt and betrayal washed over him. Why? Why would he keep Joker alive? Doesn't he want revenge? Doesn't he care at all that Joker 'killed' him? Jason ran away from the manor and continued to run until he found his old apartment building, which had since been abandoned. He swung into an open window and saw a passed out homeless person. He shook his head and stomped off into the building._

 _Jason stayed there for about two weeks and at night he would find Bruce and observe him. He had noticed that Bruce didn't waste time dealing with thugs and other villains. He didn't deliver his usual cold stare while they ranted and raved. No, he would knock them out before they even had a change to open their mouth. This wasn't the same Batman, that much Jason has noticed. He was starting to hope again that Bruce really did care about him seeing the way he was acting now. From Alfred's accounts, it seemed like he's been like this since Jason had left._

 _He followed him again through the streets of Gotham and was going to confront him tonight. However, Jason noticed a boy approach Bruce and openly know who he was and Jason was shocked. He was prattling on about how callous and unhealthy Bruce was living and that he knew the real Batman was nothing like this. Bruce seemed to be moved by the boy's words and told him that he was a good person. Someone he could admire. The boy's face shined like a Christmas and Jason felt his chest clench in pain. This was a familiar sight to him, he didn't have to be rocket science to figure out where this was going._

 _Sure enough as Jason stayed for the remainder of the month, he saw a Robin join the Batman. He grew jaded and his whole body seemed to radiate with anger. How could Bruce just so easily replace him? Him gaining a new Robin seemed to only confirm his suspicions that Bruce never really cared for Jason. He didn't want to return to Nanda Parbat, but he no longer wanted to stay in Gotham. A thought occurred to him. Maybe he should check on Grayson…_

Jason knew that Raven's words had some truth to them, but he just couldn't find it in himself to believe them. Bruce had moved on and so had he. He started to feeling a strange, yet comforting warmness spread across his chest. Slowly it spread throughout his whole body and he fought the smile that wanted to appear on his face. This feeling was unlike anything he has ever felt. His whole body relaxed from the tense position it was in. He wanted to be immersed in this feeling forever. He slowly realized though that this wasn't something _he_ was feeling. No, this was coming from an outside source.

"Are," Jason looked at Raven slowly who looked a little timid. "Are you making me feel this way?" He asked.

"I'm not manipulating your emotions," She told him and he just stared at her with more confusion. "I'm just showing you how I feel about you." She whispered softly. His eyes softened as he stared at this beautiful, wonderful girl in front of him. She was showing him everything she felt towards him. The emotions and the sensations she has around him, but has to keep unwrapped. He now could feel the layers and the actual depth of her feelings inside of him. She wasn't just showing him her emotions. She was showing him that she loves him.

"Raven…" Jason whispered, but Raven just smiled softly and kissed him lightly.

"Even if you don't think anyone else does," She told him before wrapping her small hands around his big one. "You know that I do." Jason smiled softly and leaned his forehead against hers. He concentrated and tried to push her emotions out of him and project his onto her. He knew he accomplished his task when he saw Raven's smile grow. He leaned down and kissed her tenderly.

"Thank you."

* * *

Raven was seated on the roof watching the sunrise when she heard Dick approach her. He sat down next to her and let his legs hang off the edge of the building. They sat in silence while they watched the sun slowly rise out of the water and shine onto the city.

"Vic told me you know who Red-X is." Dick said bluntly.

"I do." Raven said unfazed by his question.

"And?" Dick asked with hint of annoyance in his voice.

"He's someone from your past, yes. But he's no one to worry about." She told him vaguely and she could practically see the vein throb on his forehead.

"Raven, tell me who he is." He demanded.

"No." She told him before rising onto her feet. "Trust me when I say he's no one to worry about. At least not now." She said looking him in the eyes. Dick gritted his teeth and glared at her, but he knew Raven and she would never betray him. Although everything in him was telling him not to trust her, he knew that Raven would never intentionally hurt him.

"Fine," He muttered and Raven nodded before walking towards the exit of the roof. "But tell you're new _friend_ that he's not welcomed in Jump." He sneered.

"We won't be seeing much of him anymore." She told him before exiting the roof. After their overwhelming conversation last night, Raven didn't forget to lay in on him for taking a job in Jump. There's no need to go into detail, but let's just say that Jason is _definitely_ never taking a job in Jump again.


	9. Chapter 9

_**(A/N): I have nothing really to say except enjoy!**_

* * *

Things for the most part fell back into a normal routine. Although Dick was more suspicious of Raven's whereabouts, she made sure that he was kept in his place and didn't try to do anything stupid like following her. However, there was no more sneaking into the Titan's Tower for Jason because the risk was just too great for him to be discovered. The knowledge of Raven knowing who Red-X is, was kept a secret from Kori and Gar since it would only instill more distrust among the team. That was a decision made by Dick and Raven was happy to follow it.

Today Barry Allen, Bruce Wayne, and Roy Palmer—better known as The Flash, Batman, and The Atom—were visiting Jump to meet with Victor, Dick, and Raven to discuss their allegiance with the League and the possibility of them joining. Dick sent Kori and Gar on a mission with Titans East so the awkward tension wouldn't be present with them there. Raven told Jason who was coming and he was all but happy to stay away from her today.

"Nice place you guys got here." Barry said as the three heroes walked into the tower. "Wayne Enterprises have anything to do with it?" He asked cheekily while glancing over at Bruce who brushed him off and continued to listen to Dick debrief him on the happenings of Jump. Victor and Roy were currently talking tech and Raven didn't even try to keep up with that conversation.

"You have any new meditation tricks to teach me, Raven?" Barry asked and Raven smiled softly. Being the Flash causes Barry almost always to be buzzing and years ago he approached Raven to ask about meditation. Ever since then Raven has coached him through some meditation practices to center himself and somewhat calm his hectic mind.

"Sorry Barry, nothing too exciting." Raven shrugged and Barry pouted. He told her that they'd have to meditate together once before they left and she agreed.

"Let's talk," Bruce said and they moved to the rarely used conference room in the tower. The Titans sat on one side while the members of the League sat on the other. "Our invitation still stands with all three of you to join the League." Bruce told them and Raven fought the urge to sigh. "We highly encourage you to join. From the things Dick has told me and from what I've observed personally, the three of you will make excellent members of the League." He said as the other two nodded.

"I'm honored that you have extended the offer to me, but I'm afraid I have to decline." Dick said and everybody's eyes widened except for Bruce's. "That being said, I will happily help anytime that I am needed, but I would like to return to Gotham." Raven nodded and instantly understood Dick's decision.

"Whoa," Victor said leaning back in chair. "I'm not that surprised, but I didn't actually think you'd have the balls to actually do it." He told him and Dick rolled his eyes and looked over at Victor with a less than amused look.

"Anyways," Dick said looking back at Bruce. "I've discussed it with Tim and he and others would like to become the new Teen Titans." He told him and kept a leveled look with Bruce. Bruce had already known this since Tim approached him several times about joining the Titans. He had also known that Dick didn't have any desire to join the League and wanted to return to Gotham. His so-called "children" thought they were difficult to read, but Bruce always knew better.

"All right, how about you two?" Bruce asked looking at Raven and Victor.

"I still haven't come to a decision." Raven told them. It was true.

While Raven feels like she has outgrown her role as a Titan, she is unsure about joining the League. Raven of course still wants to be a hero, but the League seems like such a difficult commitment to take on. She doesn't know where she'll be relocated to and from the way they were previously talking, they may want her to stay at the Watchtower or at least one of the cities that had ready access to the Watchtower. But being a part of the League would allow her to do more work and help people around the world and not just in Jump. She knew that the members of the League were primarily interested in her because of her knowledge of other worlds and she felt like she could provide a significant role in doing so. Researching and exploring worlds that she never had to the time to do had always interested her, but she never had the time or it was never needed with her role as a Titan.

Being with Jason has just made that decision more difficult. A part of her feels like she shouldn't consider Jason when making her decision because this is her own career and he shouldn't be able to sway her decision, but a part of her doesn't want to neglect the fact the he is here and an important part of her life. Joining the League would only make their relationship more difficult and Jason seemed comfortable with his life now. If she were to join the League, who knows where she'd end up and hiding their relationship is already hard enough as it is. There's no saying how hard it'll be if she were to join the League. While Jason let out his demons to Raven, she could tell that he wasn't about to jump into Bruce's arms at a moment's notice. But he was her boyfriend and this was her career, surely her career should matter more. Shouldn't it?

"Likewise." Victor said and Raven frowned at him. She wasn't stupid. She knew Victor wanted to join the League, but was waiting for her to make a decision. Victor ignored her and simply stayed straight-faced as he looked at the others. Roy looked disappointed as well as Barry, but Bruce nodded stoically.

"We hope you make your decision soon. We don't take invitations lightly." Bruce told them and the two of them nodded solemnly. "And I hope you discusses these developments with the rest of your team." He said shooting a look at Dick who frowned. It wouldn't be an easy conversation—the three of them knew that as much—but they knew it needed to happen and soon. They discussed several more things before breaking the meeting. Victor and Roy were quick to head to the garage while Dick and Bruce left to check out Jump's Wayne Enterprises location.

"Meditation time?" Barry asked practically bouncing on his feet. Raven smiled and nodded and they went up to the roof.

* * *

Later that night Victor, Dick, and Raven sat in their living room in silence, still absorbing all the information they were presented. The League members left about an hour ago, but not without reminding them to make their decisions.

"Join the League, Victor." Raven told him with her arms crossed.

"I don't know, Rae—"

"Yes you do. I know you want to join, but you're just waiting on me. Just join." She said.

"No, I can say the same for you." He told her and her eyes narrowed towards him.

"I honestly don't know, Vic. You actually do." She said and Victor rolled his eyes and leaned back on the couch.

"Whatever you say, Rae." He said dismissively and Raven frowned.

"How are we going to tell Kori and Gar?" Dick asked, changing the subject. Raven and Victor remained silent and Dick stood up from the couch. "C'mon guys, this is serious."

"You're the one leaving." Victor said before motioning between him and Raven. "Not us."

"Oh please, I know you two aren't going to stay when Tim and the others get here." He said crossing his arms over his chest. That much was true, but neither admitted it.

"Kori isn't going to stay." Raven said and the other two nodded. It was very apparent that as soon as the three of them leave, Kori will probably leave too. Ever since she and Dick broke up, she seemed to lack the motivation to continue to be on the team. None of them knew what she would do if she left, but they knew she wouldn't stay.

"Gar will." Dick muttered. Garfield was too comfortable with the Titans and his life in Jump to actually move onto something else. If he did decide to leave they could only see him transferring to another Titan team like Titans East.

"Let us decide if we're going to the League first before we tell them." Raven said looking up at Dick. He frowned, not really happy with the idea. "I promise to make a decision soon—within the month." She told him and he nodded. She has putting off this decision long enough and knew she had to make a choice soon.

"Fine, a month, but after that we have to tell them. Regardless if you've made up your mind or not." Dick said and she nodded. Suddenly the red lights of the alarm began to flash and they all turned to the screen to see security footage of a guard tied to a chair in the middle of a warehouse. He was trembling in fear and they all stood up and looked at the screen confused. Suddenly a shot of a gun was heard and they watched as a bullet flew through the center of the guard's face.

"Titans go!" Dick yelled before they could see anything more. They all raced to warehouse, but the guard was no longer there.

"Ah, so these are the infamous Teen Titans." A gruff voice sounded and they quickly turned around to see an armored figure. "Funny, I thought there were more of you." The man quipped. He was built like a soldier and wore a slate gray mask with red eye holes. He had guns strapped to his body and clips of ammo strapped across his chest and around his waist. He tilted his head and put his hands on his hips as he stared down at the Titans.

"Who are you? Where is the man you killed?" Nightwing demanded. The man started laughing and shook his head as he stared at the gun.

"I would say he's about 50 feet below sea level about now." The man shrugged and they all glared at him. "Needed to get your attention somehow." He told them.

"What do you want?" Cyborg asked still aiming his cannon at him. The man chuckled again and pulled out a throwing knife from his belt before tossing it up and down.

"I have what you call 'Daddy Issues' and I've been looking forward to the day when I could finally kill the bastard." He mused and Raven's eyes narrowed. "But you guys robbed that away from me and I'm not too happy about it." He said and shook his head.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Nightwing asked. To his knowledge they haven't killed anyone purposefully.

"Slade," He said and their eyes widened. "More commonly known as Deathstroke. You guys killed him and I'm here to even the odds. You killed my kill so now I get to kill you." He said before throwing the knife at them. They avoided it before a barrage of bullets started hitting them. Nightwing flipped through the air and threw an explosive towards him. The man rolled away from it and it exploded as he grabbed a grenade off his belt.

"Oh," He said as he stood up. "I'm Ravager by the way." He mentioned before throwing the grenade in Nightwing's direction. Raven encapsulated it in a bubble and it exploded inside of it. Cyborg fired his cannon towards Ravager and he went flying through several stacks of boxes. They heard him laugh again as he stood up and dusted himself off.

"Now you've gone and made me mad." Ravager said before whipping out another gun and firing multiple rounds towards them. Raven surrounded the gun in her magic and flung the gun away from him. Nightwing flew through the air and landed behind Ravager. Ravager whipped around and attempted to slash Nightwing with a sword. Nightwing blocked with his staff and dodged his next hit. Raven threw a metal crate at Ravager and it hit him in the center of his chest. Cyborg followed up with a blast towards his general direction. Once the smoke cleared they couldn't see anything but rumble and broken boxes.

Ravager popped out and started firing multiple rounds of bullets towards them again. Raven surrounded the guns in her magic again, but this time Ravager yelled and broke away from her hold. Nightwing charged him with his batons charged up, but Ravager threw a tazer at him and he gritted his teeth as he fell to his knees in pain. Ravager pulled the barbs out making Nightwing hiss in pain. He walked passed him, but not without clubbing him on the head with his gun. Cyborg charged him, but Ravager met him with a sword and chopped off his leg. Raven gasped and flew towards him with magic surrounding her.

"You are a problem, darling." Ravager said catching her by her throat.

"No!" Cyborg cursed, but Ravager just pistol-whipped him like he did Dick. Ravager turned his attention back to Raven and squeezed her neck tighter, choking her. Raven's eyes turned white but he was quick to stab a dagger into her side, between her ribs, and twist. Her eyes returned to normal as she gasped in pain.

"Don't even try, sweetheart." He told her condescendingly. Raven choked again when he gripped her neck tighter. Her mind was trying to find any way out of this, but her energy and magic was failing her and her teammates were down. She started to panic before Ravager chuckled and rammed his head into hers knocking her out. He dropped her onto the floor next to Cyborg and Nightwing. He fished out Raven's communicator and pressed the alarm button on it.

"Remember to bring your friends," He muttered before dropping the flashing communicator next to Raven. "Then it'll be a party."

* * *

Raven's eyes exploded open as she clutched her neck and began to frantically gasp.

"Rae, you're okay," Victor told her putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. Raven looked around to see that she was in the Titan's infirmary, hooked up to an IV, and away from the nightmare she was experiencing.

"Ravager—"

"Gone," Victor frowned. "Kori and Gar found us. Brought us back along with Garth." He told her. Raven laid back in the bed as all the memories flooded her mind. She looked to see that Victor repaired his leg and then she lifted her shirt to see that her side was bandaged and she could feel the stitches underneath them. "He hurt you the worse." Victor murmured looking down in shame. He should have done a better job at protecting her. Guilt consumed him as he looked at the bruising around Raven's neck and the stitches on her side.

"Who was that guy?" Raven murmured.

"Grant Wilson, son of Slade Wilson. He apparently thinks that we killed Slade and is seeking to kill us because I guess he wanted to kill his dad." Victor told her before shaking his head. "That guy is fucking nuts." He muttered.

"Dick?" She asked wearily. Having someone so close to Slade—in behavior and actual relation—had to be hard for Dick. He was obsessed with stopping Slade and now his son shows up? Raven was worried that he would revert back to his previous toxic behavior.

"He's fine. Nothing out of the ordinary, yet. He's been treating this like any other villain and not like Slade." Victor told her and she sighed softly.

"Good." Raven said leaning her head back into her pillow.

"Are you okay?" Victor asked quietly.

"I will be." She told him reassuringly. "Not the first time I've gotten my ass kicked and it's not going to be the last." A small smile tugged on her lips and Victor smiled sadly. "Don't worry about me, Victor. I've been through worse and you know it. Worry about Dick." She said to him and Victor wrapped his hand around hers.

"You really scared me there for minute, Rae." He admitted.

"I'm fine, Victor. I promise." Raven told him firmly and squeezing his hand. "I just need some rest and meditation. I need to collect myself again."

"You want me to get you some tea?" He asked her.

"That would be great. Thank you." She smiled softly. Victor squeezed her hand one more time before getting up and leaving the room. He checked to see where the rest of his team was before sneaking into Raven's room. He found her cell phone on her desk and quickly unlocked it before dialing a number.

 _"Little Bird! It's been a while. Was starting to think you—"_

"Jason, it's Victor." Victor sighed. "Listen, something happened,"


	10. Chapter 10

**_(A/N): So I would like to give you guys an update about things related to this story and me. So, after this chapter, there'll be two more chapters making this story a total of 12 chapters. This chapter, another, and the epilogue are what I have planned for the rest of this story._**

 ** _I do have another story in the works, but it isn't another Teen Titans story. It's actually Avatar: The Last Airbender and will be centered around the pairing of Zuko and Katara (Zutara). So if you are interested in that make sure to look for it after this story is finished._**

 ** _I do plan to post the first chapter after this story is_** ** _finished._** ** _As you can tell from my infrequent updates, I'm not the most consistent person with posting so I want to tackle one story at a time. Hopefully you understand and if you are interested in my other story or would like to see me write another Titan story, let me know! Anyways, that's really it so enjoy this chapter!_**

* * *

Jason scaled the wall of the tower as quickly as he possibly could. When Victor called him and told him what had happened to Raven he stormed out of his apartment, too distracted to even grab his belt. He stopped and planted his feet against the side of Raven's window. He looked inside to see her in bed, asleep. A part of him was relieved to see her in a safe manner, but a larger part of him was still angry about her getting hurt.

He got her window open and slipped inside of her room. He slowly approached her and grimaced when he saw the bruises around her throat. He knelt beside her and caressed the side of her face with his hand. He felt guilty and angry all at the same time. This wasn't his mission and he wasn't any part of this, but Raven was his and his to protect and he failed her. He wanted to find this Ravager and kill him for laying a hand on his Little Bird.

Raven's eyes began to slowly open and she stared at the blurry vision of Jason in front of her. She sat up, but not without wincing and Jason was quick to sit next to her and wrap his arms around her. She held her ribs with one arm and rubbed her eyes with the other. "Jason?" She asked groggily. "What are you doing here?" She murmured.

"Little Bird," He whispered softly as he held her. "You're hurt."

"I'm fine," She said as she scooted away from his hold and turned her body to look at him fully. "How did you even know?" She asked.

"Victor called me." Jason told her. "I'm going to make this right. I'm going to hunt that bastard down." He said through gritted teeth.

"Jason," Raven said placing her hand on top of his fist. "I don't need rescuing or avenging or whatever you think you're going to do. It's a part of my job. I'm a hero and sometimes I'm going to encounter people who will hurt me. I don't need you to fight my battles for me." She said.

"Ra—"

"Stop," She said placing her hand on his mouth. "My team and I are going to handle this. This is something you don't need to be involved in, _especially_ if it's just because I got hurt." She smiled softly before removing her hand from his mouth. Jason looked down sadly and trailed a finger against her bruised neck. Her pale skin only made the bruises more prominent and he fought to not wince when he saw them. He didn't want to see her in this state. "I'm fine, I promise." She told him.

"I want to make this right." He murmured tracing his hand down and feeling her bandages underneath her shirt. He slowly pulled her shirt up to see her torso bandaged up and looked up at her sadly.

"He stabbed me pretty deep." She said and his jaw clenched tightly. Raven saw how tense Jason was and placed her hands on his face and let one go up into his hair. She could feel his anger, guilt, and sadness and didn't want him feeling like that anymore. "This wasn't your fault. Please stop thinking it is. Your job isn't to protect me." She trailed her hand lightly against his face before grabbing his chin and tilting his head to force him to look at her.

"I want to help you guys." He told her and Raven sighed.

"You're really willing to push your previous reservations about Dick knowing just so you could play hero and stop this guy?" She raised an eyebrow at him and he frowned. He got back on his feet and ran his hands through his hair.

"Little Bird, this guy hurt you—like really fucked you up." He said as he paced the length of her room. "He deserves much more than what you guys are going to do to him." He clenched his fists by his sides and glared at the wall.

"Jason, it's fine. I'm okay. I've been hurt worse than this. This is nothing compared to the previous things that have happened to me. These cuts and bruises will heal and I need you not to stay stuck on this image you see of me." She got out of her bed and wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned her head against his back. Jason rested his hand on top of hers and sighed.

"I was so scared when Victor called me." He told her and she just squeezed his waist tighter. "It's funny, I've spent all this time building you up as this badass heroine who won't take shit from any villain, but then I heard about this and it was like _you_ got hurt, not the Titan." She moved around him and looked up at him confused. "That came out way more insulting than I thought it would." He said and Raven laughed softly.

"What I mean is," Jason continued after wrapping his arms around her. "Is that I saw you as two people, Raven the Titan and hero and Raven my girlfriend and best friend. So when Victor called me it was more that my girlfriend was hurt and not the hero." He explained and Raven smiled softly.

"The hero and your girlfriend are both fine so stop worrying." She told him and kissed him lightly. Jason stayed with Raven until she fell asleep before he slipped out of her room. He maneuvered himself through the Tower making sure to keep a low profile. He made it to the main room and made his way over to the computer. He began to quickly hack into the computer trying to see what they had on this so-called Ravager. He read over the files quickly and saw that they didn't have shit. He frowned before pulling a small device out of his pocket—a small receptor. He whipped around and threw it against the wall. Now, it was just a waiting game.

* * *

Raven was completely healed and ready within two days and Dick was doing everything in his power to figure out where Ravager was, but he wasn't turning up any leads. He was growing more and more frustrated and when one day—almost a week later after the initial incident—they were shown a new camera feed with another security guard tied to a chair he didn't even wait to say anything. Everybody left the Tower in a rush to make it the location before another innocent man was killed. Jason was in his apartment when he was alerted through the receptor he planted that Ravager was making a move and quickly threw on his suit before transporting himself to the warehouse. He made it just in time to see Ravager point his gun at the guard.

"You've served your purpose." Ravager said and moved his finger to the trigger. His gun was knocked out of his hand suddenly and Ravager hissed in pain. He looked to see his gun on the ground and a red X beside it. Red-X jumped down from his perch and Ravager cocked his head to the side at him. "I'm guessing by the garb you are the one who knocked my gun out of my hand." Ravager mused, but Red-X remained silent. "Hmm, didn't know that Jump had a vigilante running around. Thought it was just Titan territory." Ravager said flexing his hand and the guard trembled in his seat. "Very well, guess you die too." He told him pulling out another gun and firing it at Red-X.

Red-X disappeared before the bullet could even touch him and appeared behind Ravager kicking him in the head. Ravager stumbled forward and Red-X used the opportunity to free the guard. The guard didn't even hesitate and jumped out of the chair and ran away. Red-X turned back around to see Ravager charging him. The X's on his hand enlarged and he blocked Ravager's blow with both his arms. Red-X pushed him back and Ravager started cackling. "Oh boy, you've gone and made me angry." He told Red-X before pulling out a sword and swinging towards Red-X. He dodged and continued dodging before flipping over him and landing one of his X's on Ravager. The X became larger and wrapped around Ravager rendering him immobile.

"Red-X?" Red-X turned to see the Titans have arrived and looking at him shocked as he fought Ravager. Raven stared at him with a look of shock and anxiety. He wasn't supposed to be here. He wasn't supposed to the one handling this.

"Oh? You guys know each other?" Ravager asked before using his sword to slice through his restraints easily. "Makes my job easier." He said before grabbing a grenade and tossing it towards the Titans. Raven encapsulated it with her magic while the others jumped out of the way. It went off, but Raven was able to keep it contained. The Titans charged Ravager, but he simply started firing off rounds of bullets towards them. Starfire flew towards him with glowing eyes, but he side-stepped her attack and grabbed her by her hair. He swung her around by her hair before throwing her towards Cyborg and they both went sliding across the floor.

Raven charged towards him with Changeling who was a cheetah. Ravager used the butt of his gun to hit Changeling on the top of his head forcing him to change back. He punched him across the face and grabbed him by his shirt. Ravager put the barrel of his gun underneath his chin, but it was forced out of his hands by Raven. She threw a couple of boxes towards him, distracting him enough to release Changeling. Nightwing hit Ravager with his staff and Red-X kneed him in the back. They both took on Ravager, exchanging blows as Ravager either blocked or dodged them. Ravager grabbed Red-X's foot and threw him into Nightwing and they both flew into some boxes.

"What are you doing here?" Nightwing grunted pushing Red-X off.

"Helping your sorry ass." Red-X countered getting back on his feet to see Starfire firing several bolts towards Ravager and Cyborg firing his lazer. Raven surrounded Ravager in her magic and pushed him through the air and into a stack of boxes.

"You're really annoying me, darling." Ravager said before throwing a projectile at her. Suddenly Raven was wrapped around a series of ropes and she plummeted to the ground. Ravager fired his gun towards her head and Raven's eyes began to glow prepared to try and stop it. But before she could make any semblance of a shield she watched as Red-X slid in front of her and take the bullet for her. He grunted and fell to his knee as he held his left shoulder and Ravager laughed hysterically.

"I don't know who this new kid is, but he's hilarious." He said before firing his gun again aiming for the center of Red-X's chest. Red-X noticed this and shifted his body so he took the bullet just below the other one, below his collarbone. Ravager was tackled to the ground by Changeling as a rhino and Raven's burst out of her restraints.

"Jason," Raven whispered reaching for him, but he shifted away from her and stood back up.

"I'm fine." He gritted through his teeth and took off towards Ravager who had knocked Changeling unconscious. Raven knew Jason was fine, but it wasn't exactly easy to see him get shot twice and because he was protecting her. She flew through the air and saw that Ravager was locked in combat with Nightwing and Red-X again. She briefly observed how well they moved together despite the years separated. Her eyes widened when she saw Ravager pull out a dagger and motion to stab Red-X where he was bleeding out. She tossed a metal beam at him sending him sliding across the floor before sending him flying into a stack of boxes again.

"I see I'll have to use my heavier arsenal." Ravager said as he got back on his feet. He pulled out a flame thrower and aimed it towards Raven. He fired it and Red-X tackled Raven out of the air and away from the blast. His cape caught some of the flames though and he ripped it off before it could reach his shoulders. However, the building started to catch fire and it began to surround everyone. "Ah, adds a little more to atmosphere, don't you think?" Ravager asked as he approached Red-X and Raven through the flames. Raven sent him flying again, but not before he was able to singe the top of Red-X shoulder.

"Jason," Raven murmured, but she could see that the fire hadn't been able to touch his skin, but now his neck and the side of his jaw was exposed.

"I'm fine, Sunshine." He told her and it was then when they both realized that his voice synthesizer was damaged and now his real voice came through. "It's fine, I'll worry about it later." He said before charging back towards the action. Red-X and Raven saw that Starfire was knocked unconscious and Cyborg was pulling her and Changeling out of the burning building. Nightwing and Ravager were facing off again and Nightwing flipped through the air and landed an explosive on him. It exploded on Ravager's back and sent him face first into the cement floor.

Red-X used to opportunity to charge him with his own staff, but Ravager shot off the ground and landed a punch on his wounded shoulder. Red-X gritted his teeth, but didn't make any noise and turned to swing his staff to knock Ravager in his head. Ravager grunted before putting Red-X in a headlock and managed to land one punch in his gut before Red-X slipped out of his hold. He got a hold of his staff again and swung it again towards Ravager's head again sending him sprawling onto the floor.

"Jason?" Nightwing gasped and Jason looked up at him panting before looking down to see his mask clutched in Ravager's hands. "What—How—"

"We don't have time for this." Raven said landing next to Nightwing as Ravager got back on his feet.

"You knew about this?" He asked her.

"Shut up Grayson or you're going to get your ass handed to you." Jason told him and motioned of Ravager cracking his neck.

"This is getting tedious." Ravager said. He ran over and tackled Nightwing. Nightwing flipped them over and kicked Ravager off of him and Raven threw a chair at him while he was in the air. Jason and Nightwing ran towards Ravager, but Ravager grabbed Nightwing by his neck and proceeded to choke him before using his body as a bat and knocking Jason onto the floor and crashing into a stack of boxes. Ravager smirked when he saw a metal beam collapse on top of him before turning his attention back to Nightwing.

Cyborg ran in and aimed his canon toward Ravager, but he was knocked onto the floor with Nightwing on top of him. He walked by them and proceeded to use his sword to stab Nightwing in his ribs. He then cut off Cyborg's arm with his canon attached and stabbed his sword through his chest. Cyborg powered off because of the damage and Ravager went back for the kill shot on Nightwing, but Nightwing threw another explosive on him. He flew back into some boxes and Raven flew down to them.

"You guys have to get out of here." Raven said. "The fire isn't going to stop anytime soon and you're in no condition to continue fighting." She told Nightwing.

"I'm not leaving you here Raven." Nightwing said holding his side to stop the bleeding.

"I have Jason. We'll finish this. You have to look after them." Raven said motioning to Cyborg and outside to where Starfire and Cyborg were.

"He's not anywhere to be seen!" He exclaimed.

"I'm fine Dick! Go!" She yelled at him. Nightwing scowled, but Raven ignored him and moved Cyborg outside of the burning warehouse and glared back at him. "Leave." She ordered him and Nightwing left. Raven hadn't noticed that Ravager had gotten up and was now behind her. He grabbed her by her neck and lifted her off the ground.

"Bring your team back in here so I can finish them off." Ravager demanded as he choked her. Raven gritted her teeth as she tried in vain to rip Ravager's hand off her neck.

"No." Raven choked out and Ravager's grip tightened. Her eyes glowed and she smashed a metal crate into his head cracking his helmet. She slipped from his grasp and proceeded to throw an avalanche of burning wood towards him. He burst through the flaming wood and started firing bullets towards her. Raven flew through the air and let her magic surround Ravager's feet and she gripped his ankles. She lifted him up and threw him into the concrete wall and it cracked from the pressure. Ravager collapsed onto the floor in a big heap and Raven proceeded to cover the flames in her magic to extinguish the fire.

With the flames subsided she floated down to Ravager to arrest him and trap him in her magic so he wouldn't do anything when he woke up. Raven lifted her hand up, but was shocked when Ravager grabbed her wrist in his hand. He chuckled and got onto his feet and stared down at Raven. He punched her in the face with his other hand and gripped her other wrist into his hand. He pulled her arms behind her back and held them there with one hand. He grabbed a pistol and shoved it in Raven's mouth when she started her chant.

"Should really check your work, chickadee." Ravager told her as he cocked his gun. "Now I'll blow your brains out." He said and Raven struggled against his hold. She heard a gun go off several times and her eyes went wide when she looked into the mask of Ravager, but didn't feel anything. She felt his grip on her lax and they both collapsed onto the ground. She coughed when the gun slipped out of her mouth and looked to see blood pouring out of Ravager's back. She looked up to see Jason holding a gun and glaring at Ravager's dead body.

"Jason," Raven murmured and she watched as he dropped the gun and wobble on his feet. "Jason!" She flew to him and caught him before he hit the floor. Jason stared up at Raven up as his vision of her became blurry and he smiled at her softly. He pushed her hood off and let his hand rest on her cheek.

"Guess I'm the hero today, Little Bird." He said before darkness consumed him, the beautiful image of Raven's violet eyes leading him there.


	11. Chapter 11

**_(A/N): Aw, I'm sad to see this end, but all good things come to the end…? Enjoy this last chapter before the epilogue!_**

Jason began to regain a sense of his limbs and the rest of his body, but his chest and shoulder were killing him. His mind was foggy and he tried to remember what happened to him. Ravager, the fire, Grayson, swords and bullets, Raven—Jason's eyes popped open as memories from last night flooded his mind. Raven, where was she? Was she safe?

"You're up." Jason turned to see Dick leaning against the wall in civilian clothes and looking angry. He scanned the room with his eyes and saw that he was in the Titans' infirmary. He looked down to see his chest and left shoulder completely bandaged up.

"Where's Raven?" He asked. Dick ignored him and just glared back at him. They continued to glare at each other before the sound of the door sliding open distracted them. Barbara came running in and she stopped next to Dick and Jason sighed softly. He had a soft spot for her, he had to admit it. It was hard to be angry with her, she was like his big sister.

"Hey Babs," Jason murmured. Barbara stared at him for a while in what seemed like disbelief before clenching her fists and glaring at him with tears in her eyes. She stomped over to him and punched him across the face.

"I went to your funeral! I mourned for you! How could you hide this from us?" Barbara yelled at him and Jason scowled at her while holding his cheek.

"What does it matter anyway?" He muttered.

"Jason Peter Todd!" Barbara shouted and he winced at the mention of his middle name. "It's everything! Did you honestly think we'd not find out?" She spat.

"Babs," Dick said softly. "Maybe you guys can talk about this later." He told her and Barbara clenched her fists again and stomped out of the room.

"Have you pulled your head out of your ass long enough to ask her out yet? She can really pack a punch." Jason remarked still rubbing his cheek.

"Shut up, Jason." Dick frowned. "I have questions for you." He said as he glared at Jason.

"Not until I see Raven." Jason glared back.

"Are you the reason she hasn't joined the League yet? Hmm? 'Cause she's too busy shacking up with you?" Dick accused and Jason glared at him. He was actually shock at Dick's accusation because he had no idea that Raven was invited into League. Why didn't she tell him?

"I don't even know what you're fucking talking about, asshole! I didn't even know she was invited to join the League. But I know one thing is for sure and that's you better stop while you're fucking ahead when it comes to talking about Raven to me." Jason threatened and Dick just scowled at him. The sound of the door opening was heard again and Jason sighed heavily when he saw Bruce walk in before he glowered at Dick.

"You called him?" Jason seethed.

"We had a right to know." Dick told him and Jason just rolled his eyes before leaning back in his bed. "Why the hell didn't you come to us? You just thought it'd be better to steal my suit and become a criminal?" He berated as he leaned his hands on the end of Jason's bed and Bruce sat in the chair beside his bed.

"I don't answer to you, Circus Boy." Jason spat.

"Settle down." Bruce's deep voice rang out into the room and both boys' hands clenched into fists.

"Bruce is right." Dick conceded.

"Suck his dick anymore, why don't ya Grayson?" Jason smirked and Dick glared at him.

"Permission to punch Jason in the face." Dick asked.

"Permission to shove Grayson's staff up his—"

" _Enough_ ," Bruce scolded and Dick's fists shook before he stormed out of the room and Jason wished he could follow his lead and just jump out the window. Bruce sighed before looking over at Jason who was doing his best to avoid eye contact—that angry boy he had met so many years ago was no longer a boy, but still angry.

"This must be a shock for you." Jason muttered leaning back in his bed and crossing his arms below his injured chest.

"It was a couple of months ago when I saw you dancing with Raven." Bruce told him and Jason looked at him with wide eyes. "You didn't think I would know someone entered the codes to the library and elevator?" He asked while raising his eyebrow.

"So what? You've known all this time, but didn't say anything. Typical." Jason scoffed before glaring out the window. Bruce remembered sitting in his cave, staring at the security footage from the manor, footage from stores of him walking around with Raven, and the break-ins Red-X has pulled off—it was definitely Jason.

 _"Are you going to tell him, Master Bruce?" Alfred asked as he stood by Bruce who watched the multiple tapings._

 _"There is a reason he hasn't confronted me, Alfred." Bruce said as he watched the footage of Jason flying through the air and blocking Dick's attacks. Jason had always been superior in close combat than Dick and the footage of him as this Red-X character only proved that, but Dick was smart and used his superior acrobatic skills to compete with Jason's brute._

 _"Maybe so, but maybe that should be discussed with him." Alfred said standing firm with his arms folded behind his back. "He seems to have become infatuated with Miss Roth." He commented looking up at the screen to see Jason watching Raven as she paid for some clothes at a store. He had a peaceful look on his face and small smile—Bruce noticed that he only seemed to be happy when he was around Raven._

 ** _"Gone Girl."_** _Raven spoke in the clip of them walking out of the store. Jason had her arm wrapped around her shoulders and he was smiling brightly. Bruce wasn't entirely sure why she kept saying book titles, but it seemed to be an inside joke of sorts between the two of them._

 ** _"Trying to tell me something, Little Bird?"_** _He teased and Raven just smirked._

 ** _"There's much worse things I can do to you than what she did."_** _She told him and he nipped her cheek making her laugh._

 ** _"Should I be concerned by how turned on I get by your threats, Sweetness?"_** _Jason smirked and Raven rolled her eyes._

 ** _"A lot of your behaviors should concern you."_** _Raven muttered and Jason laughed freely. Bruce had to admit, he's never seen Jason any happier than when he's with Raven. Not even when he knew him as Robin and a boy._

 _"He hates me, Alfred." Bruce spoke._

 _"That may be, sir. But I do not believe it's the responsibility of the child to love the parent, more so it is your responsibility to love him." Alfred told him._

 _"I'm not his father, Alfred." Bruce frowned._

 _"No sir," Alfred said as he took a step closer and looked down at Bruce. "But you are the closest thing Master Jason has to one."_

"Having figured out you were Red-X and knowing how long you must have been alive, I assumed you didn't want to see me." Bruce told him.

"You're right about that." Jason mumbled. Bruce frowned, but didn't say anything. Even with Jason turning his back on him and giving him the cold shoulder, he had been so happy to know that he was alive. But, it still ate away at him. He had failed Jason and from the way he was currently treating Bruce, Jason hadn't forgiven him for it.

"He's still alive, Bruce." Jason gritted through his teeth. "I don't care that you didn't make it in time, but how could you keep that lunatic alive?"

"Jason—"

" _No!_ " Jason roared slamming his fist against his bed ignoring the searing pain in his shoulder. "This was me! He killed me! And you just let him go and continue to wreak havoc on Gotham! I came back and saw him there and—a-and—how could you just let him live? If it had been you I would have killed the scum without a second thought!" Jason spat in Bruce's face, his fists clenched in anger. "There are cemeteries full of the people he has harmed…I—I just thought I'd be the last person you'd let him hurt." He leaned back in his bed and frowned.

"I can't kill him, Jason." Bruce told him.

"Yes you—"

"No!" Bruce shouted quickly shutting up Jason. "It would be too easy. I constantly think about killing him all the time, torturing him and then finally giving the final blow, but I can't. If I let myself go down to that place, I'm afraid I won't be able to come back." He murmured.

"I'm not fucking talking about killing every single villain in Gotham! I'm not talking about Penguin or Riddler, just _him_ …because he killed me. He took me away from you." Jason murmured and Bruce looked down sadly.

"I wanted nothing more than to have you back. To have been able to save you and I had to live with knowing that I couldn't save you. But I can't kill him Jason, I can't. I'm sorry." Bruce told him and Jason threw his head back into his pillow. He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth to fight the tears that were welling up in his eyes. "It was a relief to see you alive." He said and Jason scoffed.

"That's what you say. How long did it take to replace me, Bruce? A month? A week?" He spat and Bruce frowned.

"Tim didn't replace you. He's the new Robin, yes, but not your replacement. He didn't take the Robin mantle until two years after you. He came to me. I never wanted another Robin after you." Bruce told him. Jason frowned and turned his head away from Bruce. He had been angry at Bruce for so long. Angry at all of them. But now, now he was tired of being angry. He wasn't about to jump into Bruce's arm and have a sobbing reunion. No, he wasn't quite sure if they could ever get back to how they were before. All he knew was that he was tired of being angry and of running.

"There's always an open door for you in Gotham." Bruce told him and Jason simply nodded. "I don't know what your plans are, but," He paused and sighed. "Know that you always have a place in the family. It didn't disappear when you did and it won't go away if you refuse." When it was clear that Jason wasn't going to say anything to Bruce, he stood up and left the room without another word.

Bruce blinked in confusion when he saw that Raven had Dick plastered against the wall with her magic. She was glaring at him and Dick was muttering something underneath the stream of magic she had covered his mouth with. He looked at the two teens—young adults more like it—and shook his head before making his leave in the opposite direction of the confrontation. He did hope that Jason would return to Gotham though. Raven had heard Bruce leave the room, but she wasn't about to let Dick go so he could continue to interrogate Jason. When he began barking orders at her, she silenced him.

"I'm going to go inside and see how my _boyfriend_ is doing. I don't care what you have to say to him or ask him. I doubt he's very eager to see you anyways. Go and spend time with Babs while she's still in town. Maybe he'll talk to you if he's still here when you return." Raven told him as she let her magic dissipate and Dick landed on his feet with a soft thud.

"Raven I—"Raven lifted her hand up again ready to send him flying, but Dick quickly snapped his mouth shut and scowled. "Fine, I'll leave. But don't let him leave." He told her, but she just ignored him and walked into the infirmary. Jason immediately felt his shoulders relax and sighed softly. He turned his head and smiled softly when he saw Raven at the edge of his bed.

"Little Bird," He murmured and the corner of Raven's lips lifted up slightly. "I took two bullets for you, that's got to be worth some serious brownie points." He smirked.

"You're an idiot." She said but she smiled anyways. She moved to the chair that Bruce had vacated earlier and held Jason's hand in between hers.

"Shouldn't you be happy that I'm safe?" He quipped and Raven just laughed softly.

"I knew you'd be fine." She told him and he just rested his head against his pillow and stared at her with a smile on his face. "So," She asked looking up from their hands to stare at him with those dazzling eyes. "What's next for Jason Todd?"

"Well," He sighed. "I doubt Costume Queen will make another Red-X costume for me." He told her and Raven just nodded agreeing. "I was thinking about retiring that mantle anyways."

"Stealing things no longer fun?" She mused.

"Fun when you're chasing after me, sure." He smirked and she rolled her eyes. "Not so fun when it all becomes too easy." He said and shrugged his good shoulder. A lull in their conversation formed and Jason squeezed her hand. "Raven," He murmured softly. "Why didn't you tell me about you joining the League?" Raven stiffened before frowning.

"I'm not joining the League." She told him.

"You were invited to." He countered. Raven frowned again before leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms.

"I don't know if I want to join or not. There was no point bringing it up to you." Raven muttered.

"Didn't think a life-altering decision wasn't important enough to tell me? Your boyfriend? Wow, I'm flattered." He remarked sarcastically.

"I have it handled. I'm still weighing on the decision." She told him.

"Why?" He asked her.

"I have my reasons." She told him and he frowned.

"The League is a great opportunity for you."

"I know." Raven sighed and stared down at her lap and Jason frowned as he looked at her. He knew he was the reason she was holding back, there was no other possible reason for her not to join besides him. He sighed and sat up on his bed and leaned back. Raven raised her eyebrow towards him and he simply extended his hand out to her and she put her hand in his. This was going to fucking suck.

"You're going to join the League." He told her softly.

"Jason—"

"No," He stopped her and she looked at him sadly. "You're going to join the League and show this whole universe how amazing and kick ass you are. You're going to save more than the people of Jump and work alongside some of the strongest people in the world. You're going and I'm going to figure out what's left out there for me to do."

"What are you going to do?" She asked softly.

"Gotham seems to be calling me back." He told her and she squeezed his hand. They sat in silence, letting the weight of his words hang between them and Raven actually had to fight herself to not cry.

"This is really it, huh?" She asked looking up at him with glossy eyes.

"Seems like it," Jason said heavily. "Don't think for one second though that I'm not coming back for you though." He smiled sadly. Raven looked at him with confusion before he lifted her hand and kissed it. "Time and place, Sweetness. Time and place." He told her and she smiled sadly.

"Yeah." She said to him. A beat of silence followed and Raven squeezed Jason's hand. "I love you, Jason Todd." She spoke softly.

"First time you ever said that to me, you know." He smirked.

"Never had to." She smiled back pushing her emotions towards him. Jason chuckled soft before he leaned over and kissed her forehead gently.

"No you didn't." He murmured against her forehead pushing all his love towards her, completely saturating the room. "I love you too, my Little Bird."

* * *

Dick returned to the Tower later that evening after saying goodbye to Barbara and Bruce. The Tower was quiet and he didn't see anyone around. He didn't bother to check though and went straight to the infirmary where he hoped Raven had kept Jason. The door slid open and Dick stepped inside, but was greeted with a gust of cold wind. He looked around to see the bed empty and the window open. Dick scowled as he stepped towards the window and glared angrily outside. He turned to investigate the room, but quickly saw the mangled Red-X costume on the chair closest to him. A small note was attached to it and he sighed.

 _Grayson,_

 _Your days of chasing me are over, but don't believe for one second that this is the last you've seen of me._

 _Jason_

Dick shook his head and headed towards Raven's room to ask her about this. He had a feeling Jason was no real threat anymore from what Bruce briefly discussed with him, but he also had a feeling that Jason wasn't about to stop annoying him. The door to Raven's room slid open as he stared at the note once more.

"Raven, what…" He trailed off when he was greeted with an empty room. "Great," He grumbled.

Bruce was on top of the Wayne Enterprises building in Jump about to board the helicopter to leave to Gotham. Barbara was seated inside and looking a bit drained from the events of today. He couldn't blame her.

"Bruce," He turned around at the sound of his name to see Victor and Raven standing there with bags beside them. "We're ready." Victor told him. Bruce looked at the both of them, but focused particularly on Raven. He was greeted with the same, emotionless expression he has seen previously from her, but there was something that was off. That was her business though, he decided.

"Get in." He told them and they both followed him into the helicopter. Across the street, a figure remained perched on the ledge of a building as he watched the helicopter hover above the ground and slowly take off in the direction of Gotham.

"Time and place," He sighed and pulled off his hood. "Time and place, Little Bird." Jason said before dropping from the roof and running into the night.


	12. Chapter 12

**_(A/N): Hello! I'm sorry for taking so long, but I had to finish college and all that. I have my new story up which is based in Avatar: The Last Airbender so if you like that show, please go check it out! Also, check out the alternative ending in the next chapter and tell me which one you like best!_**

 ** _In the meantime, please tell me what kind of story you would like to see from me next! Thank you all for your patience and reading my story. It has been a journey and I'm happy that you guys came along for the ride._**

* * *

Raven sighed as she entered her room at the Wayne Manor. Well, really it wasn't her room, but a guest room and her room for the time being. She and Victor were in Gotham to follow up on a lead on a mission. She had heard the stories of Damian Wayne—son of Bruce, and the new Robin—but thought everyone was exaggerating. Little did she know that he indeed was the spawn of Satan himself.

She unbuttoned her coat and hung it up in her closet before looking through her phone. Victor and her had enough time to meet up with Dick—and by meet up that means that Nightwing accompanied them on their mission—and listen to him drone on about wedding details between him and Barbara—now Oracle. Raven was happy for them, but she wasn't sure who the bride was at this point, Barbara or Dick? She was excited for the wedding though and happy to see the effect that Barbara has had on her former leader.

A chill ran up her spine as she stood facing the closet. She turned to face the window and nothing was there, not even a shadow. She didn't say anything and decided to wait to see if he was going to speak to her. He has done this the last couple of times she had been in Gotham, but never has said a word to her and he never has approached her at the Wayne Manor before. It had always been around the city and he was always far enough that she could sense him, but wouldn't be able to speak to him. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. She walked towards her window and opened it, but stepped back a few feet from it.

"Are you going to creep out my window all night or just come in?" Raven asked impatiently. She heard a faint chuckle before a tall figure jumped and landed in front of her. She looked up at the red helmet now covering his face and let her eyes wander down his broad shoulders and chest. He had a dark leather jacket on and a gray, platted armor underneath with a red bat symbol across his chest. Military grade boots and holsters resting on either side of his hips. She heard a small hissing noise and looked back up to see the helmet being slowly removed. And just like that, the Jason she remembered was right in front of her.

"Hello Little Bird." He grinned and Raven smiled softly at her old nickname. She hasn't heard it for a long time. "Heard you were in town." He said.

"Yes," She said as she slowly turned and began walking back to her closet. "Like the other several times you've stalked me."

"I wouldn't call it stalking," He quickly said. "More like admiring from afar." She could feel him follow her, but still keeping a respectful amount of distance between them. "And oh my, there's a lot to admire." She turned her head to see him grinning.

"Still cheesy as ever, I see." Raven commented sarcastically and he chuckled. He knew that if this was when they were together he would wrap his arms around her and kiss her temple, but they weren't together and he remained more than an arm's length away.

"I'm guessing you've met the brat." Jason said casually walking across her room and placing his helmet on her desk.

"The Spawn? Yes." Raven said as she grabbed her hairbrush and began combing through her hair. Jason leaned against her desk and chuckled. At least someone wasn't afraid to join in on his ribbing of Damian. He became hypnotized as he continually followed the motion of her hair swinging back and forth, back and forth, with the movement of the brush. Her hair was still a beautiful, bright shade of violet like it was six years ago.

"He takes after the old man, believe it or not. Definitely mostly Talia though." He told her as he crossed his arms over his chest. Yeah, he was mindlessly chatting with her, but he was trying to get a read on her. He didn't actually think she would call him out, but she did and now she was acting so casual, almost as if she didn't even care that he was here and that this was the first time they've seen each other in six years.

"I see you work with Bruce now." She commented.

"That's a loose claim." He muttered.

"Right," Raven drawled sarcastically as she turned her torso and placed a hand on her hip. "Nice bat symbol, by the way." She pointed at his chest and he shrugged his shoulders. "Heard you were working with Kori and Roy for some time." Of course she knew that at one point Kori was working with her ex-boyfriend. Dick, ever the gossip, immediately told her and Victor.

"Yeah, it was fun in the beginning, but for a while towards the end there it just became me third wheeling them." He knew she probably wanted to know if he had hooked up with Kori. Or at least he hoped she cared enough to try and figure out if they had. It's not like Kori didn't try to sleep with him, but he couldn't sleep with her. That hits too close to home for him. Dick's ex-girlfriend and Raven's old teammate and friend—definitely not happening. Plus, she didn't hold a candle to his Sweetness. It didn't matter anyways, she was more than happy to hook up with Roy for the remainder of their time together. They still date on and off to this day, but he stays away from that whole situation. Roy, on his own, is already annoying enough.

"Why didn't you stick with them?" She asked. By this point Raven was standing in front of her closet with her arms crossed and facing Jason who was still in his position by her desk. They were on opposite ends of the room, mirroring each other's posture, and neither making a move to get closer to the other.

"We all knew it was short-term. It was never a full commitment." He told her and she nodded slowly. "How's the League?" He asked.

"A lot of work, but rewarding." She said and he smiled softly. He was happy for her. He never wanted to be the reason to root her to something that she had clearly outgrown. "I really found my place there."

"That's good. That's really good." He said and she nodded. "Look, I didn't come for a recap with you." Jason told her and she raised her eyebrow.

"So why did you come?" She asked.

"I…I just wanted to see you." He said rubbing the back of his neck and staring down at the carpet.

"Well you saw me." She told him in a matter-of-fact tone before walking back to her closet to gather her sleepwear.

"Sunshine," Jason murmured, but Raven ignored him and continued to get ready for bed. She didn't know what Jason's game was; she never really knew when it came to him.

"Jason," Raven sighed turning around to see that he moved to the center of her room now. "I'm happy for you. Bruce and Dick have told me what a great addition you have been to the family and the good you do for Gotham, Blüdhaven, and everywhere in between. It's a little reluctant, sure, since you go against their moral code, but what did you expect was going to happen when we saw each other again?" She asked and Jason frowned.

"I just wanted to see you." He reiterated.

"And you did, but you want something, I know you do." She said. "Did you expect me to sleep with you again for old time's sake? Just a quick lay while I was still in town? Did you—"

"I miss you Raven!" He exclaimed throwing his arms out in front of him. "All right, all I know is that I want you and that I've missed you these last six years. Sure, I have Bruce and everybody now and I even have Roy, but it's not the same. No one can keep me on my toes like you. No one makes me laugh like you did. I just—"He sighed and let his arms and head drop. "I miss you. I miss my Little Bird."

"You regret breaking up?" She asked softly.

"Every day." He told her before shaking his head. "Sort of, I don't know," He mumbled as he began to pace slowly. "I wanted you to join the League and I didn't want to drag you down by staying in Jump or wherever I may have ended up trying to figure out what to do after Red-X. You deserved better than what I would have put you through and the League deserved to have an amazing member by recruiting you." He explained.

"Just because I wanted all these things for you though doesn't mean I stopped loving you. It killed me to have to let you go, but I knew it was better for us, especially you, if we went our separate ways. I loved you so much Raven, still do." Jason said pushing his emotions towards her but she didn't even flinch and he sighed and stared at the ground. He watch her sigh and stare down at the ground with a frown on her face, like she was about to tell him no. He knew it. He had no chance. He knew that she would be over him and just think of him as some low-life that she's monumentally better than.

"Has it been so long that you've forgotten my interest in you? Jason, you wound me." She said and Jason cocked his head back up and stared at her in shock.

Of course Raven still loved Jason. No one quite touched her heart like he had and he definitely left a deep enough impression to stay there. Her memory didn't do justice, his emotions and love for her transcended all her expectations. It was the same familiar warm feeling that wrapped around her like when they were together, but stronger—more certain. She never quite got over him, even though she had many offers from other men. She remembered Victor pointing out what she so clearly had been avoiding.

* * *

 _"_ _It's nice to see you again, Raven." Garth said as he approached her. Raven and Victor were in Atlantis to meet with Aquaman about a mission. Apparently Black Manta had some dealings in Metropolis as of late._

 _"_ _Likewise, Garth." Raven smiled softly as she pulled off her hood. Garth had transcended the ranks of the Atlantian Army and had become of the strongest warriors in Atlantis. He has taken to working with Kaldur'ahm, the new Aqualad, and working with Queen Mera training students. "I see being back in Atlantis has done you some good." She grinned._

 _"_ _I can say the same about you and the surface. Or shall I say space? More specifically the Watchtower." He smirked and Raven shrugged her shoulder. "I have yet to properly congratulate you for your admittance into the League." He told her._

 _"_ _Thank you, but it's unnecessary." She waved him off, but he took a hold of her hand and she looked back up at him in confusion. Garth was staring at her intensely as he leaned down and kissed her hand._

 _"_ _I say a celebration is in order, Raven. Maybe over dinner, later tonight?" He asked and Raven's eyes widened a fraction at his invitation. Garth was obviously very attractive, but this was so sudden and Raven never really thought about pursuing a relationship with him._

 _"_ _I'm flattered, Garth, really," She spoke softly as she pulled her hand gently out of his grasp. "But I believe we're better off as friends and partners than what you might have in mind." She smiled sadly up at him and he sighed._

 _"_ _Very well, can't blame a man for trying." Garth smiled and Raven smiled back. He bid her a farewell before leaving for the throne room. Raven sighed and turned to go to her room, but was stopped by Victor's body. She took a step back and stared up at him and he raised an eyebrow and stared back._

 _"_ _Have something to say, Victor?" She asked._

 _"_ _Just thought it was weird that you rejected Garth's date." He commented and Raven just shrugged her shoulders. "You and Kori used to drool over him." He smirked._

 _"_ _That was years ago," Raven rolled her eyes. "And we didn't drool." She frowned as she walked around him. Victor chuckled and followed her down the hall._

 _"_ _Uh-huh, whatever you say." Victor remarked. "Still, he's a pretty great catch—pun intended." He grinned and Raven rolled her eyes again._

 _"_ _Then why don't you go out with him?" She muttered sarcastically as she entered the room Arthur had provided them._

 _"_ _You know very well I don't swing that way." He said as he sat down on his bed. Raven didn't comment and started to unpack her things with her back facing Victor. "You still love Jason." Raven froze, but didn't turn to face Victor. He didn't phrase it as a question, but rather a statement. One that he was sure of._

 _"_ _Sure, but not in the same way." Raven deflected still not facing Victor. "It's been over two years."_

 _"_ _That's true, but you still love him and in the same exact way you did when you two were together. I know it." Victor stated crossing his arms. Raven whirled around and glared at him heatedly, but that just made him smirk more. "Tell me this, Raven, do you see yourself dating anyone other than Jason?" He asked._

 _If Raven were being honest with herself, she didn't really picture anyone else but Jason with her romantically. But that just made her think that she was just being some clingy girl who couldn't get over her ex-boyfriend. As far as she knew, Jason was with Kori and Roy doing vigilante acts and he was under a new persona. He seemed to have his life together enough and to have moved on. She wasn't too sure though since he wasn't exactly on the friendliest terms with Dick, who was really her only source of information on Jason._

 _"_ _Victor," Raven spoke softly and he sighed before standing up._

 _"_ _What's stopping you, Raven?" He asked._

 _"_ _It's been long enough. Jason doesn't care about me anymore so neither should I." She said in her usual monotone, but Victor could hear the slight quiver in her voice when she said his name._

 _"_ _You're pretty stupid if you think Jason doesn't think about you anymore." Victor said and she sighed and turned herself around, crossing her arms around her. "If you'd talk to Roy more often than you would know that he's pretty much strung up on you. Even though he doesn't admit it." He told her. She turned and looked up at him skeptically and a panel from his arm popped up. "Roy sent me this video a while ago." He told her._

 _Raven saw that they were in Jump City and her eyebrows furrowed in confusion because Jump wasn't on their radar. Specifically the island where the tower was located. In the video you could see Jason in his new getup—publically known as The Red Hood—and he was staring up at the statue of Raven. Tim had decided that when he took over the mantle of team leader he would honor the members who have left the team or passed away in the line of duty. There were several statues, but the most prominent ones were of her, Victor, Dick, and Kori since they were the founding members._

 _In the video you could see Kori standing off to the side and seemingly crying softly into her hand as she stared up at herself. But Raven's focus was on Jason. He had his helmet off and from the back it looked like he was just staring at her, but over the sounds of the crashing waves you could hear him talking._

 ** _"_** ** _You should have seen it Little Bird. Black Mask had no idea what hit him when I came busting through that window."_** _Jason was telling the statue about his adventures and that tugged on Raven's heartstrings. Jason paused and his head tilted downward, before he slightly propped it back up again._ ** _"I really miss you, Raven. I hope you'd be proud of me."_** _He said and Raven felt her heart clenching inside her chest. Suddenly Jason whirled around and something hit the camera and knocked Roy over._

 ** _"_** ** _Ow! What the fuck was that for?"_** _Roy exclaimed._

 ** _"_** ** _You better delete that video you piece of shit. That's a private moment and I don't need it as part of one of your stupid montages."_** _Jason could be heard saying before the video cut to finish._

 _"_ _Yeah, that's someone who doesn't care about you." Victor said before the panel closed on his arm. Raven made sure her face remained passive, but her heart was absolutely singing._

* * *

"What?" Jason asked, but a smile started to make its way unto his face. Raven gently smiled over at him and pushed her emotions towards him. Jason closed his eyes and let out a relieved laugh as he felt Raven's love wrap around him. He missed this. He missed her. She walked up to him and he quickly pulled her into his arms and kissed her passionately. Raven wrapped her arms around his back and returned his kiss with an equal amount of passion.

"You scared the shit out of me, Sweetness." Jason chuckled as he pulled away from her. Raven smirked and reached up and kissed his cheek.

"Where would the fun be if I just let you in immediately?" She asked and he laughed kissed her head before resting his head there.

"Oh man, I missed you Little Bird." He told her and she hugged him tighter.

"I missed you too, Jason." She murmured against her chest. They kissed each other again when suddenly there was a knock on her door.

"Todd when you are done fornicating with the demon, I acquire your presence for sparring." Damian said through the door and Jason scowled angrily while Raven rolled her eyes.

"Ask Tim." Jason told him.

"Drake has return to Jump. I will expect you in 20 minutes." Damian said and Jason growled angrily before stomping over to the door and whipping it open.

"Look, I don't have time for your shit, brat." Jason glowered and Damian crossed his arms and rolled his eyes.

"I find it hard to believe that you require more than 20 minutes with the demon." Damian argued and Jason looked like he was about to bust a blood vessel.

"What is going on?" Dick asked from the end of the hallway. "Jason, what are you doing here?" He asked before his eyes shifted to Raven. "You got to be kidding me." He drawled and Jason slapped his hands over his face while Raven shrugged.

"You owe me fifty bucks Grayson!" Victor yelled from the other end of the floor and Dick put his hands on his hips.

"Really Raven? You're back on him?" Dick asked.

"Fuck you, Wonder Boy. She can do what she wants and she wants to be with me." Jason glared at him.

"Grayson let us leave Todd alone. I believe he wants to fornicate and now that you're here, I require you to spar with me." Damian said and Dick just looked at Jason and Raven in disgust.

"We're adults here, Dick." Raven said and Jason smirked.

"Yeah, Circus Freak. Get used to hearing us at night." Jason jeered and now it was Raven's turn to slap her hand over her face.

"You're absolutely disgusting!" Dick yelled. The three boys started arguing in the hallway and Raven sighed. Alfred bypassed them and looked over at Raven who was resting against the doorframe.

"Welcome to the family, Miss Raven." He said and Raven couldn't help but smile a bit.


	13. Alternate Ending

**_(A/N): Alternate ending!_**

* * *

Jason walked into the Batcave and pushed the button on his helmet to release it. He pulled off the red helmet and placed it on a table nearby. Bruce had requested his presence here in Gotham and who was he to argue when the old man was practically begging. However, Bruce was nowhere to be seen and Jason frowned. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he looked around the empty cave. Maybe he was on patrol with his spawn. The thought of Damian Wayne was enough to give Jason a headache.

"Ah, Master Jason, how nice to see you." Alfred said as he descended down the stairs with a tray balanced on his hand.

"Hey Alfred, you've seen Bruce?" Jason asked as he plopped down in a chair and swung his legs onto a table that he assumed was holding some of Damian's things.

"Perhaps if you would show your face around here more then you would know that Master Bruce is at a gala tonight." Alfred said as he nudged Jason's legs off the table and placed his tray in the spot they had been.

"You know me, Alfred." Jason murmured as Alfred poured him a cup of tea.

"Master Bruce shall be back in the morning. You are welcomed to stay in your room for the night." Alfred told him and Jason rolled his eyes.

"My room is in the Heights Alfred, you know this." Jason said and Alfred sighed.

"Yes Master Jason." Alfred conceded before turning to leave. "Stubborn, every one last of you." He muttered as he ascended up the stairs. Jason chuckled lightly before sipping on the tea that Alfred had brought him. He always had the uncanny ability to have a cup of tea ready no matter when you showed up. Maybe that was his super power.

Jason leaned back in the chair he was sitting in and looked around the cave. It was a organized mess and he knew Alfred tried to keep it as tidy as possible, but Bruce would always mess it up somehow. Add in Damian and it was practically impossible to be absolutely clean. He sighed and stood up before walking around. He picked up a couple of case files trying to piece together why Bruce would want him here. He was sure that he would call in Grayson or Tim in before him. Hell, he had Damian now too—while his detective work was subpar at best, he did have a blood lust that rivaled Jason's "supposed" one.

After shuffling through a couple of papers and finding absolutely nothing, Jason decided to take a walk down memory lane. He strolled passed Bruce's old suits, Grayson's old suit, and stopped at his old Robin costume. His relationship with Bruce and the rest of the family was strained at best, but he had to admit it did improve over the six years since he revealed to be alive again. He was closest to Babs and Alfred without a doubt, but Tim had his moments after he got over the replacement thing. Grayson and him still butt heads and sometimes they may need to have a little sparing to deal with it, but he was all right too.

Bruce, ever the sentimental man he is, decided to keep his Red-X costume as well. He repaired all the damages—in a superficial way and hung it up next to Jason's Robin costume. He had offered it to Jason and Dick, but both refused to hold onto it. Jason sighed as he looked over the costume and thinking back to the times he wore it. Particular memories stuck out more than others, ones having to do with one Little Bird. He could feel the usual clenching in his chest that happened whenever he thought about her. Six years. Six long ass years since he has seen her last.

That's a lie. He saw her on the news and he saw her in pictures, but he hasn't seen her in person since they broke up. He thinks about her all the time. He wonders what she's doing and if she was happy. Did she still love him? Did she even think about him? Or was he some far off memory or a regret that she tucked away into the back of her mind. Is she dating some asshole on the League or some asshole with enough balls to dare come near his girl? _Except she's not yours_. Jason scowled at the thought.

Nothing distracted him enough from her. Not when he joined with Roy and Kori for a bit. Not when he reconciled with Bruce and the rest. Not when he was beating scum to an absolute pulp. Nothing. She was always there in the forefront of his mind and if he were honest with himself, that's where he wanted her. He sighed and let his head drop down. This was pathetic. _He_ was pathetic. It's been six years, of course she has forgotten about him. He was some lowlife that somehow landed her, but was stupid enough to let her go.

Jason sighed again before walking back to the table he was at and collecting the teacup and saucer. He walked out of the Batcave and through the manor before entering the kitchen and depositing the cup and dish into the sink. He entered the hallway again to head back to the cave and collect his belongings before leaving back to his apartment.

"Never would have guessed this was your scene, Jason." A chill ran up Jason's spine and he was suddenly frozen. It couldn't be. He slowly turned around and at the other end of the hallway was none other than Raven. He stared back at her in a confounding mix of shock, awe, wonder, and relief. She was in civilian clothes and was staring back at him with her arms crossed in front of her. She looked practically the same with maybe just another inch or two in height and slightly more angular features. She was here. Only a few feet away from him and all the things he wanted to say to her were suddenly stuck in his throat.

"Little Bird," Jason finally murmured and his words hung in the air between them. Raven smiled slightly and Jason had to fight the urge to run over to her and kiss the ever-living shit out of her. That's all he wanted to do. "Um, how are you?" He asked scratching the back of his head. Raven couldn't him but grin; the cocky boy she had known was now acting shy. Maybe catching him off guard like this was a good thing after all.

"I'm good. The League turned out better than I thought and I still get to work with Victor so that's a plus." She told him keeping her voice even.

"That's…That's great. That's really great." He said shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"I see you've gained a new persona." Raven mentioned, eyeing the red bat symbol across his chest.

"Yeah, Red Hood is what I go by. Mostly work here in Gotham doing the dirty work and all that." He shrugged and Raven hummed in response. Jason was on edge, he hadn't been expecting this at all and he didn't know what to do with himself. Should he play it cool and act like nothing had happened? Should he just run over and kiss her? What if she had a boyfriend? That's no good. It better not be that punk Aqualad. Why was she here of all places? It wasn't like Gotham was her stomping grounds. He would have known otherwise.

"How much of an inner monologue do you have going right now?" She asked and he smirked.

"Shakespeare would be impressed." He quipped and Raven chuckled.

"Did you know that _A Midsummer's Night Dream_ is actually one of my favorite plays?" She asked.

"I don't believe you ever told me that one." Jason grinned.

"I never really finished my list." Raven told him and Jason smiled, but this time a little sadder.

"What are you doing here?" He finally asked.

"I had to call in a favor from a friend." She told him with a shrug of her shoulder. He narrowed his eyes, when suddenly everything started to piece itself together. Bruce didn't need him for some mission; he called him here because Raven asked him to. But, what could that possibly mean?

"You asked Bruce to call me here." Jason stated and she nodded. "Why?"

"I thought it was the time and place." Raven smiled. Jason started to smile and eventually that formed into laughter, one that he couldn't stop. He walked over to Raven and immediately pulled her into his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he lifted her off the ground, burying his face into her neck.

"Oh Little Bird," Jason murmured pulling away from her. "You are still the best." He smiled and Raven laughed. He immediately kissed her and her arms tightened around him as she wove her fingers into his hair. His heart pounded in his chest when he felt her love seep into him and he mustered just enough energy to push his onto her. He took her deepening the kiss as a sign that she felt it. They pulled away a little breathless and Jason rested his forehead on hers. "What made you decide now?" He asked softly.

"I've always been ready Jason." She told him pulling away and looking up at him. "I was just waiting for you to catch up." She grinned and Jason chuckled lightly before kissing her forehead.

"You didn't tell me you love me until we broke up. I didn't think you were ready." Jason murmured. Raven smirked and looked up at him before pushing her emotions out to him. He sighed in relief and happiness feeling her emotions wash over him.

"I thought it was obvious that I love you. It was implied that entire time, really." Raven told him and Jason smiled down at her.

"I know. I just like hearing you say it though." He smirked and Raven rolled her eyes. Jason leaned down and kissed her firmly again. "I love you, Raven." He told her.

"I love you too, Jason." She whispered.


End file.
